Springtime for Sarada
by Nate Grey
Summary: A series of short stories, showing how Sarada enjoys being her father's daughter. Note that you need a Rinnegan to see the joys, otherwise they'll just look like supremely bad parenting. C4: Failure to recall if your husband wears glasses, after a decade of marriage, when ninety percent of his offense is doujutsu-based, is a big deal. Might want to look into that.
1. Return of the Rabbit

Notes: Something of a story behind the title. For years, I have tried and failed to produce a story entitled "Springtime for Sasuke". It was named after the infamous play, "Springtime for Hitler" because I was fascinated by the idea that someone would devote a play of that nature to Hitler. Similarly, I am fascinated and vaguely disturbed that Sasuke disproved my theory of his reproducing asexually. And before I could take out my anger on his kid, I found that she had a crappy enough life just from _being_ his kid. So I thought I'd show how it could be even worse. Which is always smart where Sasuke is involved. It just so happens that "Spring" is part of Gaiden's title, so that worked out nicely.

Chapter Summary: Sasuke spent over a decade away from Konoha, searching the world for Kaguya. And Kaguya quietly regained her power, waiting for Sasuke in the one place that it never occurred to him to search for her: Konoha. In his house. With his family. Making her more of a parent to his kid than he was. Um, awkward.

* * *

 **Springtime for Sarada**

 **A Naruto Fanfic by**

 **Nate Grey (xman0123-at-aol-dot-com)**

 **Chapter 1: Return of the Rabbit**

* * *

"We talked about this, sweetheart. No pets."

Sarada Uchiha, then seven years old, ducked her head, wincing as she glanced over her shoulder to see her mother frowning at her. "But, _Moooooom_..." she whined.

"No," Sakura replied firmly. "No pets. That's the rule, and you said then that you understood it. True or false?"

"True, but I-"

"And now I find that you have ignored the rule entirely," Sakura went on, gesturing angrily at the obvious evidence: the adorable white rabbit in Sarada's arms, the freshly painted rabbit pen that Sarada had built in the backyard with remarkable speed while Sakura was at work, and the small mountain of vegetables that Sarada was trying to hide behind.

"Mom, I only-" Sarada began.

"You broke the rule, Sarada, and you need to be pun-"

"Himawari has six rabbits! _Six_! She was even letting me keep mine at her house, until her parents found out and said I needed to be responsible for my own pet. So I saved up some money until I could afford to-"

"You did all of this on your own?" Sakura asked sharply.

"I had _some_ help," Sarada admitted, clearly unwilling to name her accomplices. "But I paid for everything myself. Including the labor that went into making the pen."

"Which doesn't explain why you knowingly broke the rule about no pets, Sarada."

Sarada glared at her. "None of my friends ever want to sleep over. Except Himawari, but if I let her in here, she'd never leave. Ch?ch? says we never have enough food, but I know she's only saying that because it's just the two of us. She feels weird sleeping in a house with no father around, I can tell. She actually asked me if she could bring her mother with her, the last time I asked her to sleep over."

"I would have been... fine with that," Sakura lied with some difficulty. She would have put up with Karui Akimichi for Sarada's sake, anyway. But Karui had never really forgotten that Sasuke had kidnapped her sensei. And her eyes could be pretty scary when she was busy holding a grudge. Also, she was strangely a better cook than Sakura, which was incredibly annoying. She'd only married into the Akimichi, there was no way her cooking should have improved that much.

"Mom, you're missing the point. A rabbit doesn't make excuses not to spend time with me."

"A rabbit is a pet, and we agreed-"

"That was before I realized that being part of this family would suck so much!"

Sakura frowned, keeping a tight hold on her temper solely because she could see that Sarada was truly upset. The girl was shaking, and the rabbit in her arms looked quite displeased about that. "Does he have a name?" Sakura finally asked.

Sarada blinked slowly. "What? Oh. Um, her name is Rabid."

"Oh, honey," Sakura sighed. "You can't name a rabbit 'Rabbit' and not expect-"

"No, not 'Rabbit' like a bunny, 'Rabid' as in foaming-at-the-mouth, overly aggressive-"

"I heard you," Sakura said through gritted teeth. "I was hoping you were joking."

"So I can keep her?" Sarada asked hopefully. "I'll rename her after you, if that would help."

"It would not. So long as you're being responsible, I guess I can look the other way this one time. But I'm not cleaning up after her, and you are responsible for keeping Ch?ch? from eating her."

Sarada's face lit up. "I love you, Mom!"

Sakura waved her off wearily. "Say that the next time I punish you, please. I'm going to start dinner. In honor of our new houseguest, we'll be having salads."

Perhaps if it had been a dog, or a cat, Sakura would not have agreed. But each time she looked at the rabbit, she was reminded of how tiny and cute Sarada had been as a baby, and her heart melted just a bit. She couldn't have gotten rid of either one if she'd tried. And it was fortunate she didn't, as that would have ended badly for a variety of reasons.

Still, Sakura wished that Sarada had given the name some more thought, or perhaps less. Because for the time being, they were stuck with Rabid Uchiha.

* * *

It had been sixteen years. Sixteen years since Sasuke had last set foot in Konoha. In that time, he had occasionally had to stop and help defend the world from various threats: the revived Akatsuki, the revived Uchiha clan, the revived Orochimaru. But he had done all of that without ever going home. He always said that the mission was the most important thing.

But after sixteen years with no trace of Kaguya Otsutsuki in sight, even Sasuke had to admit the excuse was flimsy at best. In truth, he simply had no idea how to be a husband or a father, and hadn't wanted to stick around and find out how badly he'd screw it up by staying. So he hadn't. In theory, by the time he came back, Sarada would have outgrown the need for a father, and Sakura would be so used to being without her husband that she would have become similarly self-reliant. He refused to believe that either would sit around sulking and missing him for all that time. He was not especially loveable, and it would have gotten old at some point, even for Sakura. As for Sarada, surely she would hear enough negative things around the village to know better than to get her hopes up too high.

Which was not to say that Sasuke hadn't actually looked for Kaguya. He'd searched the world for her, and found nothing. But it had been a convenient excuse all the same.

There had been countless messages from Naruto over the years, delivered by summon toads, suggesting that Sasuke at least send a Shadow Clone home from time to time. Sasuke refused, ignoring all offers to see pictures of Sakura and Sarada.

It wasn't that he missed them. He had spent most of his life running away from Sakura, and if he had to live without her, he would. Sarada was a complete stranger to him, and there was no way to miss someone he didn't know. It was more that he didn't want to know them: Sakura as his wife, Sarada as his daughter. Attachments made people weak and vulnerable. Attachments could be snatched away in the blink of an eye. It wasn't something that Sasuke ever intended to let happen to him again. Itachi had taught him that much, whatever his original intent had been.

Still, there were more important reasons to return to Konoha. Naruto would have shared any leads on Kaguya immediately, and he wasn't really a deep thinker even now. But he had a way of thinking outside of the box that was usually worth the effort of asking him. And if there was one thing an ancient evil like Kaguya couldn't predict, it was the way Naruto's mind worked.

* * *

Sasuke chose to sneak into Konoha by the cover of night, like a criminal. He certainly didn't have to, but in all honesty, he liked the way criminals did things, and their way suited him well. They answered to few, and no one expected them to be honest or noble.

He knew something was off the moment he passed through the gates. The guards, who surely noticed him, did not react in the expected way. They ignored him, and when Sasuke slowed down and actually invited their pursuit by making obvious noises, they put even more effort into ignoring him. Either they had been briefed by Naruto, or they were all Nara and thus incredibly lazy. And Sasuke had spotted at least one guard with a Byakugan, so it wasn't the latter.

The next problem was the total lack of a night-life. Konoha had always been fairly active at night, even if it was mostly ninja on patrol after the shops closed. But both the streets and the rooftops were completely empty. There weren't even any drunks or low-lives hanging around. And Sasuke couldn't imagine that Naruto had created or enforced such a strict curfew for the entire village.

But the real sign that things had gone to hell came in a far more obvious form: there was an empty lot where Ichiraku Ramen had once stood, and every indication that they had not only been closed for years, but had failed to relocate elsewhere in all that time. Even Sasuke wasn't sure he wanted to live in a world where Naruto didn't love ramen enough to prevent such an occurrence. If Naruto didn't still cherish ramen, in what other ways had he changed? And did his strange behavior have any connection to the unusual state of the village? Almost certainly so, assuming Naruto was still Hokage. And Sasuke was no longer willing to assume anything, including that his own family was intact. With that in mind, he headed straight for his home, concern for his family taking priority for the first time in years.

* * *

The first thing that Sasuke noticed upon entering his home was Naruto's signature cloak, draped across a chair. Another man might have read far too much into that. Sasuke knew better. Sakura had had every opportunity to be with Naruto in the past, and oddly enough, had taken none of them. She certainly wasn't going to be unfaithful now that she had Sarada to look after, and especially not now that Naruto's wife and in-laws all had the Byakugan. And yet the presence of Naruto's cloak did indicate that he himself was in the house, which was still unusual, given the late hour.

Even stranger, Sasuke could detect the chakra of his wife and daughter in the house right away. Which would not have been so odd, except for the fact that both had apparently been doing some incredibly intense training. Sakura's already impressive chakra reserves had at least doubled, and though he had been nowhere near Sarada since her birth, she had to have three times more chakra than anyone her age should have had, including Naruto's kids. And no one should have been training that hard unless they expected to be caught up in another war, or a fight with an immortal.

"You really should have come home sooner, bastard."

Sasuke frowned as he turned to find Naruto leaning against the wall. While Sasuke had been focused on the chakra of Sakura and Sarada, he had not been so focused that he should have missed Naruto entering the room. And Naruto had never been subtle, not even when he learned his father's prized technique. Sasuke, at least, had always been able to feel him coming.

"Why are you in my house, dead-last?" Sasuke asked.

"Not like I expected you to be here to find out I was," Naruto countered. "Did you forget how a family is supposed to work, or did you just not care? All this time and you're still treating Sakura like she doesn't matter. I'd kill you if I thought I could get away with it."

There was no heat behind Naruto's words, and he actually looked bored as he spoke. These were warning signs to Sasuke, and though he could detect no hostile presence in the house, and believed Naruto to be genuine, he drew his sword.

Naruto shook his head. "Won't need that. Way too late to do anything about this now. Told you, you should have come home sooner."

Sasuke glared at him. "Start making sense, for once."

"Don't suppose you ever found any trace of Kaguya out there?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke froze. "None."

"Ever once think about looking here?"

After a long pause, Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "You were supposed to-"

"Yeah, I'll just bust out these awesome eyes the old sage left me. Oh, no, wait, you've got the eyes. I've got the mad awesome chakra sensing. Which means I knew she was here only when she wanted me to know that she'd set up shop. By then it was too late to stop her, and I couldn't do squat about it from outside of her hidden dimension, anyway. Guess you didn't think that part of the plan through."

"You're telling me she's in the village?" Sasuke demanded.

"I'm telling you she is the village. I haven't seen a person here in years that doesn't carry some of her chakra. Except you."

"Then Sakura? And Sarada?"

Naruto shook his head. "They were the first ones she caught. She was pretty clever about it, too. Took one look at you and figured you'd never be home looking after your family. Now she not only has them, but every family in Konoha. All because you couldn't be bothered to look in on yours. I told you being an insensitive ass would blow up in your face one day."

"How did she break our seal?" Sasuke asked.

"I still don't know. Maybe someone unsealed her, or she managed to hide a piece of herself somewhere before we sealed her. All that matters now is she's back, and she's not going anywhere anytime soon."

* * *

It had been so very easy.

The Uchiha child had welcomed her with open arms, and a desperation that actually moved Kaguya. It wasn't natural, to crave affection that much. She decided then, as a woman and a mother: she would punish the man who had made the child this way. And she would start by taking his family away from him, not that it even required much effort. Only the mother and the Hokage would say anything decent about Sasuke, and after a few years, only the mother actually believed what she said to be true.  
At first, Kaguya timed the expansion of her chakra within the child, so that it was easily passed off as growth spurts, or increased training. And if anyone ever detected a flare of chakra that could be considered questionable, it was easily explained by the girl's heritage. Being that closely related to someone with chakra once more twisted than Madara's came with a certain amount of backlash, whatever a person's intentions.

Avoiding detection was simple. Kaguya had learned that acting through Zetsu was not an option: the Hokage would instantly sense that. He could not, however, sense her specific chakra. It was too powerful, too old, and too all-encompassing to be detected by someone who didn't know her on an intimate level. And it was that much more difficult to sense when she made it a carbon copy of someone else's chakra. Zetsu had been talented in that area, but he hadn't been her, which made all of the difference.

* * *

"She's in my house, too?" Sasuke demanded angrily when Naruto showed him to the bedroom.

"Actually, only one of the entrances to her hidden dimension is in your house," Naruto corrected. "If you want a physical location, technically it's under your house. But you're going to love where she put it. I know I did. Go on, take a good look."

Sasuke activated his Rinnegan and almost rocked back on his heels in shock. Kaguya's chakra was not only all over the room, but also the house, and blanketing the entire village. And just as Naruto had said, Sasuke could now see the entrance to Kaguya's dimension... directly under his own bed.

"Just think," Naruto chuckled. "If you had come home even once this whole time, and taken Sakura to bed like you should have, you could have saved the whole village. After you two got done in here, anyway."

Sasuke ignored him, staring at the glowing portal beneath the bed. It did not appear to have any other special qualities, though only being visible to the Rinnegan had made it special enough. "You can't see it. How did you know where it was?" he asked Naruto.

"I've seen them disappear into it. It's not like they try to hide it anymore."

"You didn't stop them?" Sasuke asked.

"By the time they showed me this, Kaguya could make my whole family grow temporary horns on command. I wasn't exactly in a position to stop anything. And from what I can tell, the only ways to get inside are to have the Rinnegan, or to be invited. I did ask you to come home."

"You never said why I should," Sasuke insisted.

Naruto glared at him. "The hell I didn't. I told you that your family needed you."

"You left out the part where Kaguya had them and the whole village brainwashed!"

"Did you forget everything we ever learned? 'Look underneath the underneath.' I shouldn't have had to spell it out for you. Your family should have mattered enough to bring you home at least every few years. And if not that, I figured sex with your wife would bring you home every month."

"You're really stuck on that. If you want my wife, then say so."

"What I want is for her to have a husband who gives a crap a few times in a decade. But looks like we're both stuck with you. You going in after your women or not?"

* * *

Kaguya's dimension was nothing like Sasuke expected. It was essentially the size of a large room, covered in grass and wildflowers, and contained little else, other than Sasuke's family and a highly suspicious white rabbit. All three were seated in the grass, but only the humans seemed to notice his arrival.

"Ah! He's here!" Sakura said happily, clapping her hands.

Sasuke frowned. Other than the increased chakra, she seemed no different. She couldn't possibly be under Kaguya's control, at least not at the moment.

"Who's he, Mom?" Sarada asked, sounding bored.

"Sarada!" Sakura scolded. "Show some respect! That's your father!"

Sarada blinked. "What, you were serious about me having one all this time? I was sure he was dead. That's about the only thing that would have been a good excuse for me never seeing him."

"Your father had a very important mission-"

"Mom, give it a rest, please. I've lost count of the times I nearly died. If I had, it would have been without ever knowing him, and you know what? Once I stopped caring about it, I had a pretty good life. I am not taking three steps backward just because he wants to show up now. I'm starting to get why people said I was lucky he was never around."

Sakura frowned and glanced worriedly at Sasuke. "Sarada, that isn't fair."

Sarada scowled at her. "Me never meeting my father wasn't fair, Mom. And other than my genes, I bet he hasn't done a single thing that benefits me. He doesn't send home money or gifts, he doesn't send either of us letters, and at this point that academy teacher who smells funny is more of a father to me than this guy."

Sasuke was irritated by Sarada's disrespectful attitude, but he was more concerned about the rabbit, which appeared to be dozing near Sarada's left knee. It hadn't moved yet, other than breathing, but he was sure that simply stabbing it without explanation would not go over well.

Sarada noticed the direction of his gaze and quickly picked up the rabbit, settling it in her lap. "So, what do you want, anyway?" she demanded. "I doubt you're here to see either of us. You've made it clear that you can get along just fine without doing that."

"Sarada," Sasuke said slowly, "put the rabbit down and back away."

"You think you can just walk in here and start ordering me around, because-"

"Sarada!" Sasuke snapped. "Do as I say!"

"Mom told me never to listen to strangers," Sarada spat at him.

Sakura sighed. "Sasuke-kun, why are you so concerned about the rabbit? It's Sarada's beloved pet, and she-"

"There is no point in pretending any longer. He knows."

Sasuke didn't have to look to know that the voice had come from the rabbit. And it was a good thing he didn't, or else he might have missed the blank look that settled on Sakura's face as she murmured, "As you wish, Lady Kaguya."

Perhaps more disturbing was that there was no change in Sarada's expression, which implied that she was fully aware of Kaguya's possession of Sakura and was not the least bit bothered by it.

The rabbit, no longer pretending to be asleep, stared directly at Sasuke, its Byakugan staring straight through him. "I have been waiting a long time for you, Sasuke. Though not quite as long as these two, it seems. Apparently our battle taught you nothing about protecting the bonds of family."

"I was protecting my family, by searching for you," Sasuke argued.

"And that turned out so very well," the rabbit replied, smirking at him. "No, you are lying. If you were really so concerned about your family, this would not be the first time either your wife or daughter has heard from you in so long. You possess the power to reshape this world, yet you cannot seem to ensure your own family's happiness and stability. Perhaps your line truly is cursed. And perhaps that is partially my fault. I failed as a mother many times, but even I can see that simply putting forth effort repeatedly is better than not trying at all."

"It's easy to preach when you're the one that turned my daughter against me!"

"It was easy to turn her against you, when you were never here to defend yourself, or to ever make an impression on her in person," the rabbit answered smoothly. "You may blame me all you wish. That will not change the fact that Sarada blames you for your choices. Choices I had no influence over, I would remind you. Until and unless you accept blame, Sarada will never forgive or trust you. But if you truly feel that you are unfit to be a father, and if that is why you stayed away, I would not blame you. And if you are concerned with how your daughter was raised, do not be. She is a fine human."

Sasuke froze, certain he did not like where this was going. "What do you mean by that?"

"I have raised her into a fine human. I have been with her all these years, listening to her insecurities, offering comfort and guidance, ensuring that she grows properly in the ways of our clan."

"You are not a member of my clan," Sasuke growled.

"True. You are a member of mine. For the moment. But that can and will change, if you seek my life, Sasuke. Konoha is mine now, as is your family. You may join us. But unitl I can trust you, I would take back the chakra given to you by Hagoromo. Admittedly, that may interfere with your using the Rinnegan, but so long as your intentions are honorable, you will not need it."

"And if I refuse?" Sasuke asked.

"Then you can resume your life outside of this village. But you will never see your family again, unless it is on the battlefield. You will have no more chances to harm them."

"Sakura would never accept that."

"Sakura has had over a decade to see other children growing up alongside their fathers, and just as long of Sarada's complaints of a damaged family. You would be surprised what she would accept. Or who. There are many men who would be happy to take your place in her life. Perhaps some already have. How would you know either way? And would you even care?"

* * *

Naruto had grown up under the assumption that when Sasuke hurt the people close to him, it was rarely ever done on purpose. Sasuke had lost his family at a young age, and perhaps because he knew he could never have them back, he lashed out at those he saw as trying to replace them. Or perhaps he could only quiet the rage in his heart for so long before it spilled over and drove him to violence.

After the war, there had been small signs that Sasuke had changed. Marrying Sakura, and making Sarada, for example. And then Sasuke had come up with the search for Kaguya. And while it made sense that only Sasuke could find her, Naruto had never understood or accepted the part where Sasuke never came back home. There had been so many times where he had been prepared to go out and drag Sasuke back, but Hinata had always stopped him.

"He'd only run again, and hurt them more in the process," she always said. Which was true. And also possibly Kaguya speaking through her. now that he reconsidered it. "It has to be his choice." Which was even truer. If Sasuke didn't want to come back to his family, there was no point.

Naruto couldn't understand how Sasuke's heart worked, if it did at all. From the moment Naruto had found out that Hinata was pregnant, he always found ways to sneak in time with his kids, even if it was through Shadow Clones. His son never failed to find unique ways of getting into trouble, and his daughter was the sweetest thing on two legs. The thought of not seeing them for even a few months made Naruto's heart ache. He couldn't imagine how Sasuke managed it, and apparently desired it, for so long.

That was why Naruto hadn't even tried to fight Kaguya when he first discovered her in the village. Someone who could spirit his family away in the middle of the night, and would be impossible to track without Sasuke's help, wasn't a foe he could afford to anger.

Kaguya had infested the entire village, but harmed no one. She had merely passed her chakra on like a disease, albeit one that seemed to be entirely beneficial, in that it notably increased chakra capacity, but did little else, initially. The problem was that any being that possessed a portion of Kaguya's chakra was also under her complete control, as often and as long she so desired.

She had targeted the Hyuga clan after Naruto's family, her mastery of the Byakugan making them easy prey.

But aside from a few new laws that didn't actually change all that much, Kaguya didn't seem to want much of anything from Konoha, other than total control of its population, which she did next to nothing with. Naruto was not so naive as to believe that it would end there. He rarely left the village for fear of what might happen in his absence, and he was certain that Kaguya had to be spreading her chakra throughout the rest of the world, although Sasuke's lack of findings suggested otherwise.

Also, Kaguya seemed more overbearing than evil now. She would occasionally provide a reminder of her power, in the form of some random person close to Naruto suddenly gaining a temporary Byakugan, or growing horns shaped like rabbit ears. Other than that, she was content to keep Sakura and Sarada as her constant companions. And so long as the pair continued to make semi-regular public appearances and remained in good health, Naruto could not truthfully say that Kaguya was hurting them. Just the opposite, to hear her tell it.

Of course, Kaguya was ethically wrong, but if she had first formally established a clan in Konoha and named herself clan head, everything she had done would have been covered by law. So long as she allowed the possessed ninja to act when necessary, and did not interfere with their duties, Naruto would have been powerless, especially as Hokage, to stop her. The only real difference between Kaguya and the Hy?ga was that they had controlled people through influence rather than chakra, and they had certainly interfered with far less good intentions and far more resulting harm all over the village through the years. Kaguya's chakra had done wonders in all areas. The mission success rate had never been higher, medic-nin were saving patients that would have been beyond their skill years before, and Naruto now lost more veteran ANBU to retirement than to death in the field.

And if the only prices he had to pay for all that was a slight loss of control, and Sasuke never seeing Sakura and Sarada again? Well, it wasn't as if Sasuke had expressed any interest in seeing them to begin with. and Sarada had eventually gotten over Sasuke's absence. As for Sakura, if Sasuke wasn't going to make her happy by being with her, and Kaguya could find someone who would, that was another plus. Sakura had earned the right to be happy, even if it had to be forced on her. And Naruto, for one, was sick of seeing her unhappy, especially when she invited it on herself by insisting on staying with Sasuke.

It wasn't a betrayal, not really. Naruto had a duty to his friends and his village. Sasuke was the only thing that had managed to hurt his family in quite some time, and it was time to cut off the bad leg.

* * *

"Mama, help! Kushina got out again!"

Hinata sighed and slowly opened her eyes, taking in the sight of her daughter leaning over her. She did not need a clock to know that it was the middle of the night. Kushina only ever seemed to vanish during such hours. "Calm down, Himawari. Where did you look for her?"

"Under my bed, in my closet, and in the hallway."

Hinata mentally counted to ten. "And did you think to use your Byakugan while you were looking?" She already knew the answer, though.

Himawari blushed. "Um, no. I was so worried that I didn't think about it."

"Well, try it now, dear." Hinata wanted to encourage her children to do things for themselves, and more importantly, she did not want to get out of bed for anything less than a true crisis. She did not consider Kushina's nightly escape attempts to be on that list.

"Oh, I found her!" Himawari cried shortly, beaming in relief. "She's with Papa again."

"She always is," Hinata reminded her. "She must be living up to her name."

"You really think so?"

"I know so."

Himawari had decided to name each of her six pet rabbits after the previous Hokage. So there was Hashirama, Tobirama, Hiruzen, Minato, and Tsunade. But the final rabbit had also been female (and Himawari had not wanted to name one after either Sixth, anyway), and since one had already been named for her father's father, Himawari named it after her father's mother. To everyone who pointed out that Kushina had never been Hokage, Himawari insisted that was only because she'd died before she got the chance. And in any case, the rabbit did feel like a Kushina. She seemed to think she belonged to Naruto, and escaped at every available opportunity, just to be near him.

"Sorry I woke you, Mama," Himawari apologized.

"It's fine," Hinata yawned. "Just remind your father to put Kushina back in the pen with the others."

"This is not why I woke you, Hinata."  
Although there had been no change in Himawari's voice or expression, Hinata instantly noticed the slight difference in her chakra fluctuations. She had never determined if that was because Himawari was her child, or due to her own chakra's uniqueness, or a gift that Kaguya had allowed her. "I am honored, Lady Kaguya. As always," Hinata murmured as she sat up, now fully awake.

"I will have to deal with the Uchiha soon. Whatever the outcome, I am sure that Sakura and Sarada will need your family's continued support."

"I cannot imagine that I could provide them with anything that you cannot, but it will be as you say. Do you think you'll have to kill Sasuke?"

"I would regret it, it would complicate things. Yet it is an acceptable outcome. Some disruptions simply cannot be tolerated."

Hinata noted that Kaguya seemed genuinely annoyed by having to deal with Sasuke, which at least was something she could understand. She could not exactly make the case that Sakura and Sarada had been happy without Sasuke around, and yet she was sure his absence was preferable to his presence. "I understand. Was there anything else you required of me?"

"Yes. Himawari is considering giving Kushina to her father for his next birthday. Encourage her."

Hinata blinked slowly. "May I ask why?"

A flicker of annoyance passed through Himawari's face. "Why would you? It would make them both happy."

"Yes, I know that, and you know that. I'm merely surprised that you would care enough to bring it to my attention."

"We are not so different, Hinata, whatever you might think of me. We have different ways of raising our children, but it pleases us to see them happy."

* * *

"Mom, you burned the rice again," Sarada complained the next morning.

"Sorry, honey," Sakura apologized, taking the bowl away. "I was distracted."

Sarada frowned at her. "So that guy is gone? Again?"

"He... yes, he's gone," Sakura answered, looking away. "Lady Kaguya didn't want him here, and we live to serve her, so..."

"Good," Sarada replied. "I didn't want him here, anyway. We're better off. Lady Kaguya takes better care of us than he ever did. Why was he so special to you, anyway?"  
Sakura sighed. "Sarada, I have learned that it's a waste of time trying to convince others of what I see in him. I can only tell you that he is what my heart wanted. And when you heart wants something, you will do anything to grasp it, and hold onto it, for as long as you can. Even if others tell you to let go."

"I didn't like him."

"That isn't surprising. He has never been good with first impressions. Or children. Or marriage, if you want to get technical about it."

"Are you admitting that he wasn't a good husband or father?"

"None of which changes that my heart still wants him, and you Sarada," Sakura replied, squeezing her daughter's shoulder. "You are both precious to me, even if you are not exactly fond of each other."

"You mean like the way I can only stand Himawari in small doses?"

Sakura smiled. "Something like that, yes."

"Are you going to be sad, now that he's gone? I don't want him here, but if it means-"

"Lady Kaguya," Sakura interrupted, "was very understanding. She offered to let me forget him, if it ever became too much. But I don't think it will be necessary." She smiled confidently. "Your mom is much tougher than she looks!"

Sarada looked uneasy. "You must be an absolute monster, then, because if I wasn't your kid, you'd scare the crap out of me half the time."

Sakura's smile stayed firmly in place, even as she returned the bowl of burned rice to its original spot in front of Sarada. "In that case, you're a monster's kid, and than means eating burned rice should be no problem for you, missy."

"Uh, Mom, I didn't-" Sarada began.

Sakura's smile widened. "Eat. It. All."

Swallowing nervously, Sarada reluctantly began to eat. "I should really learn when to stop talking." She paused when her rabbit hopped into her lap. "Oh, Rabid! Would you like some of Mom's special rice?"

The rabbit gave her a cold stare.

"I guess not." Sarada lowered her voice. "Look, can you help me out here? Just will the burn away, or wish up some more rice?"

"I have no problem with your attitude toward that man," Rabid said. "He has done nothing to benefit you, and only brought chaos to your life. But disrespecting your mother, either of them, demands punishment, Sarada. Eat the rice."

"Easy for you to say. She never burns your food," Sarada grumbled as Sakura placed a plate of raw vegetables on the table.

"I can also burn your lunch, if you'd like," Sakura offered.

Sarada frowned. "But you've already made my lunch, you always do it before breakfast."

"Exactly. And I have no problem burning it now."

"Are you absolutely sure you're not upset about that guy being gone, Mom?"

"Honestly, I'm more upset that my daughter thinks of me as a fire-breathing monster who burns her food."

"You misunderstood me. I don't mind so much having monster in my blood. I just don't want to eat like one. We're Uchiha, not Akimichi."

 **End of Chapter 1.**

* * *

Continued in **Chapter 2: Salada of the Grass**

Sarada has the chunin exams won when she runs into, you guessed it: a suspicious Grass genin. But this one happens to be authentic. Problem is, she's authentically Sarada's half-sister.

* * *

Endnotes/Rant: (may want to skip if you love Sasuke)

Initially, I thought Naruto Gaiden to be the brainchild of a madman, holding Kishimoto at knifepoint and forcing him to put his name on it. Mind you, a well-meaning madman, who was once a Sasuke fan, but gradually became bitter with the revelation that Sasuke has no soul. But at some point just before the final chapter, Kishimoto made his escape... and gave Sasuke back his soul. And you have no idea how much I wish that hadn't happened. Because, once again, I feel like the final chapter ruined nearly everything. And the most disgusting thing of all? I was right about Ino not being over Sasuke, which means she actually married the guy most like Sasuke on purpose. Made me throw up in my mouth a little bit.

So, this story (and indeed, most of my Sasuke-centric stories) are an attempt to return things to a simpler time. When Sasuke had no soul, or at least did a great job of keeping it locked away, where it belonged. Uchiha walking around with souls, nobody wants to see that. We want a Sasuke who stabs everyone who claims to love him. A Sasuke that could drop Karin's kid in Sakura's lap like a boss, then walk out for over a decade, and still find a hot dinner on the table when he got back. A Sasuke with a pimp eye that strong, I could at least grudgingly accept. A Sasuke that can't kiss his wife is an embarrassment... to Sasuke. Make him a powerful jerk, but don't make him shy. That's Hinata's gimmick, and it cost her a cousin and a rod to the gut, so she's more than earned it.

I feel like the Sasuke in Gaiden is something of a new character. Supposedly a redeemed version of the guy who once hated the world. Which only works if you accept that Sasuke has been redeemed. And I only feel that Sasuke made amends with Team 7. And by that I mean he basically did nothing, and they forgave him yet again. Here' s the problem: the village isn't Team 7. Sasuke may have once been their golden boy, but that was before. Kakashi actually had to put some effort into getting Sasuke pardoned, so Konoha is no longer in the business of looking the other way when Sasuke messes up. Yet there is no mention of anything Sasuke has done to repay the village for his crimes against it, or even the former classmates he nearly got killed. And I doubt there is anything to mention. Instant Forgivess no Jutsu at work yet again. And clearly Ino invented it.

I'm sure there are lots of people bragging now that Sarada is safely Sakura's child. Doesn't change the fact that Sarada has a crappy father, has zero memories of him until recently, and that he is leaving her yet again. Or that he apparently has time to train Boruto, with the very same jutsu that could have easily allowed him to check on his family. I'll give Kishimoto credit for one thing: he never fails to remind us that Sasuke is cuel to people who love him, for no apparent reason.

People still make excuses for Sasuke not going home in over ten years. I maintain that there simply isn't a good enough one, especially among those who can make Shadow Clones. Jiraiya didn't have an excuse for not checking on Naruto, Kakashi didn't have one for not training Naruto or Sakura during the chunin exams, and Sasuke especially doesn't have one for all that time. I'm reminded of Sasuke preaching to Naruto about how he couldn't understand what it felt like to lose a family, when he never had one. Sasuke knew how it felt be ignored by his own father, yet he can't see that he's doing it to his own kid. Funny how that works. Only not really. What is it about being a combat genius that makes for lousy parenting in Naruto? I mean, Goku used to think marriage was food, but even he knew enough to play with his kids occasionally. And he had the very valid excuse of being dead half of the time. Which is just going to make Sasuke look worse in the crossover.


	2. Salada of the Grass, Part 1

Notes: The majority of this, and the following chapter, was written months before I saw the Boruto movie. I decided _not_ to make many changes out of personal preference. To be clear, I did enjoy the movie, but as you should know by now, enjoyment has no place in this series.

Summary: Sarada had the chunin exams won, until she ran into, you guessed it, a suspicious Grass genin. But this one is authentic. Authentically Sarada's half-sister, that is.

* * *

 **Springtime for Sarada**

 **A Naruto Fanfic by**

 **Nate Grey (xman0123-at-aol-dot-com)**

 **Chapter 2: Salada of the Grass, Part 1**

* * *

Naruto burst into hospital room, only to find quite a confusing scene. The hospital staff was standing around with blank looks on their faces, no doubt under the influence (which, in a hidden village, typically meant genjutsu more than drugs). Sakura, having just given birth and still heavily drugged, was singing a song, loudly and horribly off-key, but with admirable determination all the same. Sasuke was in the corner, doggedly applying what appeared to be black shoe polish to his newborn daughter's head. This made much more sense when Naruto spotted what could only be a curly, pink hair among all the black.

Instantly, Sasuke was in Naruto's personal space with a Chidori against the blond's throat. This was impressive, considering Sasuke was cradling both the baby and the shoe polish in the other arm.

"No one can know," Sasuke hissed, clearly indicating his desire to keep the pink hair an S-rank secret.

"Okay, but I think you're taking this a little too far," Naruto told him.

"Narutoooooo!" Sakura sang, a sappy grin on her face as she finally noticed him. "Look at my pretty baby! I want to name her after food, too! Her name is Salad! Ahahahaha!"

The Chidori pressed deeper into Naruto's throat, drawing blood. "That name is not going on the birth certificate," Sasuke growled.

"I guess they gave her too much drugs?" Naruto asked, doing his best not to smile as Sakura began to hum loudly.

Sasuke grunted. "More like not enough. I told them to give her enough to knock her out, but they claimed that would make the delivery difficult."

Naruto gaped at him. "Well, yeah! Her being knocked out might make pushing baby out a little difficult!"

"I want her to have no memory of this day."

"Sasuke, it's your daughter's birthday! Of course Sakura's going to remember it!"

Sasuke glared. "Her name is Sarada, she was born with black hair, and that's all anyone needs to know. I will burn the birth records if they show anything different."

"You are so in denial," Naruto sighed. "But I guess what you want isn't unreasonable. Actually calling a kid Salad... even I wouldn't do that."

Sasuke relaxed, meaning that he moved the Chidori so it wasn't touching Naruto's neck any longer.

Naruto frowned. "You can put that away now. And take the genjutsu off the staff, while you're at it."

"Not until I rewrite their memories. No one can know."

"What is that, your new catchphrase?"

"Tell it to the janitor I beheaded and stuffed in a closet."

* * *

Sasuke was not present at a very similar birth, roughly a week later. This was understandable, up to a point: witnessing the miracle of birth, even once, can be rather traumatizing. And if there was one thing Sasuke had experienced enough of in his life, it was bloody, mentally-scarring trauma related to his family. Also, it was clear to him now that he just had bad luck with baby-making. The minute he learned he was having another girl, Sasuke correctly assumed she would come out a redhead and mostly tried to forget about her.

And since Sasuke was not present, things proceeded almost exactly as they would have for Sakura, had he not been there to intervene. In other words, there existed, in another forest-themed hidden village, an unfortunate baby girl named Salada, whose mother had been thoroughly drugged when naming her. Whether the girl was unfortunate because of her name, parentage, or both, was a matter of much public debate. However, she was also rather fortunate in several ways. For one thing, she was born without any health issues (unless one counted near-perfect health as an issue), which would remain the norm for the next several years of her life. For another, she had been blessed with a mother who was determined to make sure that having an absent father was in no way a hindrance to her.

* * *

 _Years Later_

The "totally random" display board arrived at its next pairing with an almost audible thunk.

Sarada Uchiha vs. Salada of the Grass

Among the gathered spectators, both Naruto and Sasuke paid extra attention as the two fighters took their place in the arena. As Hokage, Naruto was of course interested in the potential of foreign powers, particularly Grass, who had long been an ally, but in a somewhat frosty way. Sasuke, on the other hand, had his own reasons to be alert. Reasons that not just he would soon be aware of.

The two girls on the arena floor had a remarkable amount in common, despite their differences. They were roughly the same height and weight, had similar pale complexions, and wore glasses (Sarada's were red with round frames, Salada's were black with square ones). Sarada's hair was (dyed) black, short, and styled neatly, while Salada's dark red hair ran to her waist and looked as if it ate combs for breakfast. Most alarming, both girls seemed determined to tear the other apart with their teeth, if needed. Perhaps even if not needed.

As if that wasn't strange enough, Naruto noticed that Salada greatly resembled her female sensei. Also, the sensei looked very familiar. And it wasn't until he caught her glaring at Sasuke that he realized how he knew her. And how Sasuke had clearly known her, and obviously Sakura, at roughly the same time.

Naruto coughed weakly and leaned over to mutter in Sasuke's ear. "When you said you wanted to restore your clan, I didn't actually think you meant that you wanted to repeat the history of the clan destroying itself."

* * *

Sarada was confident, and with good reason. Among her age group, she was the only kunoichi with considerable talent in genjutsu, and the only genin that could last more than a minute against Kurenai Yuhi's most terrifying illusions. While it was true that ability was due more to natural talent than hard-earned skill, Sarada had trained relentlessly to master and enhance that talent. People assumed that as an Uchiha, and as her father's daughter, she would excel in that area. And she had, not because of their expectations, but because of her own burning desire to surpass the legacies of her father and uncle. She didn't hate them, but the shadows of their infamy were like two giant weights constantly around her neck, and she longed to be free of them. Making a good showing in the chunin exams was the start of that.

"You should quit right now," Sarada advised the Grass genin. "Once the match starts, there won't be any mercy from me." Already, she knew what genjutsu she would start with: Infinite Inferno, an Uchiha classic and among the first she had learned from her father's scrolls.

Salada smirked. "Thanks, but I can't pass up a chance to defeat my first Uchiha."

Sarada's left eyebrow jerked irritably. For that remark, she intended to double the chakra she poured into the genjutsu, increasing its potency.

The proctor gave the signal to begin, and Sarada leaped back, weaving the genjutsu's chakra around her opponent. It was second nature to her, simply picturing the chakra as threads, and once they were tied, there was no escape. But just as Sarada began to tie the knot, it was as if someone cut the threads, and the genjutsu fell apart before it was even applied. Sarada had no time to puzzle over it, as she had to dodge the shuriken that Salada threw at her.

Annoyed and confused, Sarada tried another genjutsu, but got the same result: it was shattered before it could take effect. Even then, Sarada had other options. With a blink, she revealed her Sharingan, and instantly tried to bring the Grass genin under her sway. And despite staring straight at her, Salada palmed a kunai and threw it with unaltered accuracy, nicking Sarada's arm and increasing her worries.

It only got worse from there. Every tactic Sarada had honed to perfection simply fell apart. No genjutsu could take hold, no Sharingan technique had any impact. Sarada could have tried hand-to-hand, but it was clear that Salada preferred that method of fighting, and was likely as good at it as Sarada had thought she herself was at genjutsu.

In desperation, Sarada brought a hand to her mouth and spat out a large fireball. It wasn't something she liked to rely on, but she was an Uchiha, and she had mostly run out of options. In her impulsiveness, however, she hadn't taken into account that such a large attack would momentarily hide Salada from her own view. Sarada paid for that a moment later, when a long, black projectile tore through the center of the fireball and embedded itself in her chest.

There was no pain, only a numbness that sapped all of Sarada's strength. Darkness closed in on her from all sides, and then she knew no more.

* * *

The first three minutes of the match was nothing too exciting, mostly Salada throwing things and Sarada dodging them. But Naruto was surprised that Sarada was having so much difficulty. She was a fairly good strategist, but nothing seemed to be working for her.

The mood shifted when Salada backed up and removed her glasses, which revealed... absolutely nothing. This was comforting to the Leaf-nin in attendance. At least, it was until the next series of moves.

Sarada launched a fireball, far too large for visibility's sake. Salada responded in a way that was completely unexpected by most, and especially by Sarada: she fired a black rod from the palm of her hand, and she obviously hadn't summoned it.

"Oh shi-" Naruto began to say, but by then, Salada was declared the winner, and medics were trying to safely remove the six-foot black javelin protruding from Sarada's chest. He had no time to dwell on the grisly sight, because Karin walked up to him, making a point to polish her Grass forehead protector before speaking.

"Greetings, Hokage-sama. On behalf of my village, I request an audience with you, to discuss the potential ramifications of my village establishing a new branch of a clan that is currently exclusive to the Leaf."

"You mean the Uchiha?" Naruto asked, glaring at Sasuke.

"Actually, I don't," Karin corrected. "As you saw, Salada is able to tap into certain abilities that were once thought exclusive to the Rinnegan, despite not possessing it herself. This is proof of her unique heritage. We briefly discussed establishing a branch of the Uchiha, but ultimately decided that the Uzumaki were a far more... honorable and desired clan." She shot a glare at Sasuke.

"You know what? Fine, let's do that," Naruto agreed, surprising Karin and Sasuke. "Today, in fact. I'm all for my clan being restored, and even if I don't like the way it happened, I doubt that was your fault, Karin. And it is good to see you again."

Karin stared at him in shock. "It is?"

Naruto clapped her on the shoulder. "You're family, no denying that. Why don't we have dinner at my place tonight? You can meet my family. And bring Salada." His grip on her shoulder tightened. "But in case it wasn't clear, the first thing you're going to do is heal Sarada."

"I have every intention of doing so," Karin quickly assured him. "This was an unfortunate accident, nothing more."

Naruto figured this was true enough, as Salada seemed greatly disturbed by the results of her last attack. Probably she had expected Sarada to be able to dodge it. Frankly, so had he. "I really hope that's true, Karin. Because if I thought, even for a moment, that Grass wanted that girl dead, your village would burn."

* * *

Though she had been reasonably worried, Sakura had promised to stay at home until news of the chunin exam results reached her. Sarada had said that if she was old enough to be promoted, then she was also old enough not to have her mother shadowing her. Sakura had tried to explain just how bad things had gotten during her own exams, but Sarada, being something of a history buff, had already known. She insisted that she was prepared for anything, and having seen her pack, Sakura was forced to agree. Sarada had sealed anything she could possibly need into storage scrolls, including some things Sakura never would have thought to bring at that age. Sarada had her own crush on a boy, but unlike the Sakura of so long ago, she did not allow it to rule her thoughts, or take priority over her career as a kunoichi.

Yet it didn't change the fact that if things could go wrong at the chunin exams, they would likely do so in a way that was impossible for anyone to adequately prepare for. There was no way to explain this to Sarada, who was far too confident in her own abilities. It was true that she could already do things with her Sharingan that even Sasuke hadn't been capable of until he'd fully mastered his, but Sakura attributed that to a combination of rare genetics and Sarada's ingenuity, rather than pure skill. In her opinion, no one she knew had been truly prepared for what happened in their first chunin exam.

But Sakura had promised her daughter, and if she had learned anything from Naruto, keeping your word was something that decent people did whenever they could.

It was fitting, then, that Naruto was the one who showed up at her door that afternoon, a grim look on his face. "Sakura-chan, I need you to come with me," he said. "Something happened."

"Are you ordering me, as Hokage?" Sakura asked, hoping he was joking.

"I'm asking as Sarada's godfather, and Hokage."

The blood drained out of Sakura's face. "Is she hurt? Just tell me-"

"I need you to come with me," Naruto repeated. "Please."

"W-What if I say no?"

Naruto stared at her, thinking. "I'd have to pick you up and carry you. It's that important."

"I'd fight you."

His face fell. "Please don't make me knock you out, Sakura-chan. It's hard enough for me to even think about hitting you. Especially right now."

Sakura glared at him. "I'm not going _anywhere_ until you tell me if my daughter is okay, Naruto!"

Naruto bit his lip, shook his head, and sighed. "Okay. She's hurt, but she's in good hands. I have no reason to doubt she'll recover. But that's not why I need you to come with me. Not entirely, anyway."

"What else could there be?" Sakura demanded.

"Depending on how you and Hinata react, we may have a serious political situation with Grass."

"What does Hinata have to do with-"

"Sakura-chan. Please, just come with me. This should be discussed in a secure location, and more importantly, I promised Sarada that I would bring you to her."

* * *

Ino was upset. This was not surprising: her son's team had been eliminated in the first round of the chunin exams. She wouldn't have minded as much, if they had been intimidated into losing. But no. They had been eliminated solely because her son had assumed there was a mind game, when there had only been simple, straightforward instructions to follow. To be fair, there had been a rather complicated mind game just beforehand, which the team had successfully navigated. And perhaps that had left them paranoid. Worse, Sarada's team had made it through the first round, which meant that Ino had lost her wager with Sakura, which meant that Ino had to babysit Sakura's son for the duration of the exams.

It wasn't even that bad a deal, really. Especially considering that if Sakura had lost the bet, she would have had to flirt with Sai, for however long it took him to realize that she wasn't being sincere. Which, for him, could easily have been days.

Anyway, it wasn't as if Sakura's son was even a particularly difficult child to watch. He was quiet, well-behaved, and could keep himself busy for hours with little more than his imagination. Plus, he looked enough like Sasuke, who looked enough like Sai, that no one ever questioned it if they saw Ino with him. Really, the only bad thing about Sakura's son was that he was overly sensitive. Not just in the way that he cried easily, which he did, but in the way that he could sense virtually everything happening around him, especially if it involved his family. It was impossible to lie effectively to a child like that, and Ino had swiftly come to realize that being able to lie to a child was a huge part of parenting. Perhaps that was why Sakura's son liked being around Ino so much: he knew that she knew she couldn't lie to him.

So when the boy came to her and stated plainly, "Ino-san, nee-chan is hurt, and I need to see her," Ino didn't question how accurate his concern was. But she also knew Sakura's rule for watching the boy: "Never let him be the parent, he's far too good at it."

Ino shook her head. "Sorry, Chi-chan, but you know how this works. You don't leave my house unless your mom knows about it. She doesn't, so we're staying put."

The boy frowned at her. "I'm going. You can come if you want."

"Uh, no. You're not going anywhere."

"I'm a clone, by the way," the boy pointed out, just before he burst into smoke.

"Crap," Ino murmured.

* * *

Sakura briefly grew more concerned when Naruto didn't take her to the hospital. Instead, he took her to the Hokage's mansion. She hadn't been there since Kakashi retired, but Sarada had sleepovers with Himawari occasionally. She would no doubt be more comfortable there than at a hospital. Since neither Tsunade nor Kakashi had any immediate family, they had shared the residence for simplicity's sake, and Naruto had asked them to stay when he succeeded Kakashi. Consequently, it was probably the most secure building in the village, and with either Tsunade or Shizune there almost constantly, Sarada was surely getting the best possible medical treatment. Not for the first time, Sakura recognized how good it was to be a personal friend of a Hokage, or three.

Naruto had told Sakura nothing on the way over, but as they approached Himawari's bedroom, he suddenly stopped her. "Before we go in, I have every reason to believe that Sarada will be fine by now. That's not what you will be worried about."

Sakura snorted. "Are you serious? If it was Himawari-!"

"I know," Naruto said quickly. "I'm trying to say that when you walk in that room, and see what I saw, Sarada's condition will be the last thing on your mind. I don't want you to feel ambushed, so I'm warning you now. Sarada was injured in her preliminary match. She lost to a Grass genin."

"That's pretty unexpected, but why would that cause a political situation?" Sakura asked. "Or is this another case of a Grass genin not actually being one?"

Naruto shook his head. "Oh, this one is the real deal. But due to her unique parentage, she possesses a bloodline that was exclusive to the Leaf, and her family is in the process of obtaining clan status with Grass. Naturally, this will cause some... conflict with us."

"I still don't see how this would impact both me and Hinata," Sakura pointed out. "Wouldn't it only be one of us?"

"Sakura... were you aware that Karin was originally a Grass genin during our first chunin exam?"

Sakura's eyes bulged. "WHAT?!"

"Yeah. I never noticed her then, but that's when she first saw Sasuke. Well, you wondered what happened to her after the war. It looks like she went home to Grass, and convinced them to take her back. She was pregnant at the time, and apparently the identity of the father was more than enough to get her back in their good graces."

Sakura gritted her teeth. "And now she wants to establish the Uchiha in Grass because she's got a kid with the Sharingan, right?"

"No offense, but you have _no_ idea how much I wish it was that. In that case, I wouldn't have to involve Hinata. But it's worse."

"But... then why is Hinata involved?"

"The genin that injured Sarada... she did it by impaling her with a chakra receiver. And the clan Karin wants to establish isn't Uchiha. It's Uzumaki."

* * *

Sarada was unclear on much of what happened to her after she lost the match. She was certain of only two things, as they seemed so vivid in her memory. First, she recalled biting a red-haired woman, because she had never before bitten anyone. Second, she was told by the same woman that Salada was the result of an affair with Sarada's own father.

And now, Sarada was lying in Himawari's bed, while Salada was entertaining her with stories of life in the Grass. Technically, she shouldn't have been doing that. Sarada had already filed away certain details that she felt were not common knowledge outside of Salada's village. Not because she still considered Salada an enemy, but because Sarada simply liked to know things.

It should have bothered her, the fact that she had a half-sister. There was only one way to get those, after all. And it certainly confirmed one of her suspicions about her father, and his dream of reviving their clan. Really, Sarada was more concerned about her mother, and Salada's, as well. It was also dangerous for their villages. At the moment, Grass was a distant ally of the Leaf, but that could easily change, depending on how this worked itself out. She knew the Hokage would try nearly everything short of war before it came to that, so she wasn't too worried. If nothing else, she trusted him to act as a shield for her family, because he had once been in love with her mother. At least, she assumed that was how it worked. He was always nice around them, and delighted in spoiling Sarada whenever she would allow it. Perhaps it was typical godfather behavior, but she doubted it.

"You don't talk much," Salada said abruptly.

Sarada blinked and glanced at her. "Actually, most people think I talk entirely too much. But right now, I'm thinking."

"About?" Salada prompted.

"Us. Our father. Our mothers. Our villages." She hesitated, then added, "If we could ever live together."

"I'd like that," Salada said at once, though she didn't seem happy.

"Really? Why?" Sarada asked.

"I always wanted a sister, but I never thought I'd get one. Mom tends to scare most guys off. And the ones she doesn't are usually pretty odd. Anyway, I used to dream about all four of us living together: you, me, and our mothers."

"What about Dad?"

Salada grinned. "He wouldn't be there. Then we could talk trash about him. You know I've never even met him?"

"That's not fair," Sarada murmured, surprised by how much that fact bothered her.

"Well, I think he makes civilians too nervous for constant visits, anyway. Apparently he's a pretty scary guy. And before she devoted herself to being furious at him, I think Mom really loved him. That's probably why she's so mad that he has a wife and kid."

Sarada coughed. "Actually, I've never seen any proof that they got married."

Salada snorted. "Figures."

There was a sudden knock on the door.

"We're not decent!" Salada immediately shouted.

"Yes, we are!" Sarada snapped.

Salada shrugged. "Well, as decent as illegitimate children can be, I guess."

At any other time, Sarada would have been deeply offended. But since Salada was including herself in that, it didn't sting quite as bad. Hardly at all, really.

The door opened, and Naruto poked his head in, though with his hand firmly over his eyes. "I'll have you know that lying to the Hokage is a good way to end up in a cell overnight."

"I don't see Mom. You didn't keep your promise," Sarada said accusingly.

"For your information, she's right behind me, trying not to have a panic attack. So I believe the correct statement would be: 'Thank you very much, bestest godfather in the whole wide world.' Go ahead, I'll wait."

"You certainly will. I'd never say anything like that."

Naruto sighed deeply. "You were cuter when you were tiny, wrinkly, and not yet potty-trained. How I miss those days." He moved aside to let Sakura in, then backed out of the room and shut the door.

Sakura glanced between the two girls several times, her eyes wide.

"Mom, this is Salada," Sarada offered. "We're, um... related, obviously. You should probably discuss that with Dad the next time you see him."

Sakura's face hardened. "Actually, I think involving your father would only make this worse. And considering his poor decision-making is what got us here in the first place, I'd rather not see him anytime soon. Now, what's this I hear about you being impaled?"

"That was my fault," Salada said quickly. "I thought she would dodge."

"No, it was my fault," Sarada insisted. "I _should_ have dodged."

"If you've got the energy to argue, you must be feeling better," Sakura said as she stepped closer, placing her hand gently on Sarada's stomach. "Who healed you?"

"My mother did," Salada replied, drawing Sakura's suspicious gaze. "She said her way was faster than anything a medic would do. Also, she didn't want the accident to look any worse than it did."

"So you mean it wasn't your intention to kill the heir of the Uchiha?" Sakura asked sharply.

Salada looked genuinely horrified. "No! She's my sister! Why would I want to kill her?!"

"Because, sometimes the bonds you have with others just get in the way," Sakura replied, though it was obvious she was no longer really directing her anger at Salada. "And killing them would make things so much easier."

"She's talking about Dad," Sarada whispered.

"Ah," Salada said. "So it's okay to kill as long the person deserves it."

Sakura paused, realizing she had the chance to influence a young mind. "Um... make sure they really deserve it, though. Like your Dad."

Salada giggled. "You sound like Mom. Only not as pissed off."

Sakura smiled weakly. "I don't know, I've been told I have my moments."

"But you're not mad at us, right?"

Sakura hesitated. "Your mother and I... weren't exactly friends. I can't imagine that's changed much, even though she did save Sarada."

"Can't you just talk to her a little?" Salada asked. "Please? Trust me, she's really mad at Dad right now, too. I bet you two would get along great!"

Sakura looked at Sarada, who was oddly quiet. "Was this your idea?"

"No, Mom. But I'm not against it. I want to be able to see my sister again, and I'd prefer that neither of us have to become a missing-nin to make that happen."

"That's going to depend more on how things go between her and the Hokage."

"But we both know your vote always counts with him," Sarada countered. "And yes, I know it's unfair of me to ask you to do that. But it's unfair that I can't be with my sister, too. And you're the only one who can do anything about it for me."

Sakura scowled at her. "I was really hoping that the first time I had to unfairly influence Naruto, it would be when I was trying to convince him to pay for your wedding, in order to cover up your pregnancy. I would actually prefer that situation to this one."

To her credit, Sarada didn't even blush. "I'm not having any kids. Especially not Uzumaki kids. They're fine as siblings, but you'd have to be insane to want to raise one yourself."

Sakura glanced at Salada, who remained silent. "No objections?"

"Oh, she's right," Salada replied confidently. "Mom says that every time I get into trouble. Though, she also says she was insane to fall for Dad, work for Dad, and work for Orochimaru. Pretty much she was insane her whole life, apparently. She says that to make a point, but I'm usually too busy laughing to get what it is, exactly."

 **End of Part 1.**

* * *

 **Continued in Salada of the Grass, Part 2**

Sakura tries to find some common ground with Karin, while Salada meets her other half-sibling. Sarada is made aware of a potential health issue, but some are more aware of it than others.

* * *

 **Endnotes:**

It is not realistic to restore a clan through a single female. Sarada has a better chance of dying in the field before twenty than she does of surviving several pregnancies. As Sasuke appears to be in no hurry to have other children, I can only assume that: A) he has abandoned his goal of reviving his clan, or B) there are some clones hidden away (which Gaiden confirms via Orochimaru), or C) there are some babies hidden away. And though clones are more in line with my original theory of Sasuke reproducing asexually, clearly certain kunoichi still aren't smart enough to stay away from him. This story assumes that C is the option he chose.

Salada possesses both a natural immunity to genjutsu (at least, all the ones Sarada was able to throw at her), and the ability to generate chakra receivers. Which is odd without having the Rinnegan, but odd things happen (and should) when Uzumaki and Uchiha mix. If Boruto's movie taught me nothing else, it's that the new generation cheats through supreme genetics. And if the "rules" really mean that much to you, write your own fanfic where everyone follows them and nothing unexpected happens. Can't promise I'll read it, though.

 **A Note/Rant/You-Knew-What-This-Was-When-You-Started-Reading on Sarada's Origin:**

I was among those convinced that Sarada was Karin's daughter. Since then, Sarada's origin was explained. Do I admit that I was wrong? Sure. Am I going to apologize for it? No. The explanation does not change the first impression, which is a black-haired kid wearing Karin's glasses. Everything else you assumed at first glance from every other kid in chapter 700 was exactly what you thought. So I feel that they were visually patterned after certain people, and in every case except Sarada, those people were later confirmed as their biological parents.

Please understand that the truth made the situation worse. "Karin is not Sarada's mother... but Karin did deliver Sarada, Sarada is wearing Karin's glasses, there are no birth records in Konoha, and Sakura and Sasuke have no wedding photo." So it's not a conspiracy, but somebody put a great deal of effort into building the framework of one, all for the sake of what, making sure no Uchiha had a decent childhood? Well, mission accomplished. I can just picture Itachi shaking his head and saying, "This is why we can't have nice things."

To put it another way, the truth was so much less fantastic than the original misleading idea, that it left far less of an impression on me. Somebody tells you that an Uchiha and Uzumaki had a kid, that's massive. Somebody tells you a month later they made a mistake, and it was actually just another Uchiha kid, that's a major letdown. Don't get me wrong, Sarada is an interesting character, but if Karin were her mother, that would be grounds for her replacing Boruto as the main character. And I am already _way_ more interested in seeing Sarada develop, than I am in seeing how Boruto turns out.

And there is a loose end. Karin never outright admits to being over Sasuke, which is concerning (I trust I don't have to explain why). But on top of that, she saved the umbilical cord of the wife of the man she was in love with. As if with Ino around, we needed more proof that Sasuke fangirls never get over him, and this by far trumps Karin's previous stalker tendencies. But even if Karin and Sakura are genuinely friends now, and that was purely a sentimental token of a very emotional moment they shared, it suggests that Karin is more attached to (and therefore is more of a parent to) Sarada than Sasuke is. Despite probably having never seen Sarada since she was born. If Sasuke can be Sarada's father by staying away from her, then Karin can be her second mother/slightly crazy aunt in the exact same way. Naruto himself said feelings trump blood. And at one point, Sarada felt like Karin was her mother, and there is no question that Karin clearly cares about Sarada. Which is more than you can say for Sasuke at several points.

Now, I could get a little crazy, and suggest that Sarada's needing glasses were the result of Karin purposely poking her in the eyes during the delivery, just so Sasuke's daughter would have to wear Karin-style glasses for the rest of her life, and always carry a little piece of Karin over her eyes. And since the glasses were the first thing many people noticed about Sarada, and caused to think she was Karin's daughter, it could have crossed Karin's mind. I don't think that's what happened, but wrong impressions would certainly be drawn if Metal Lee was introduced wearing a red shirt with a white circle on it. Especially when you know the potential parents have even a slight history, and there is no undisputed and definitive mother in the picture... and also that Sakura's husband was away for a decade and won't kiss her even when he is around. But that's just an example, mostly.

All that said, Sarada is one of only three new gen kids that I do really like. I don't understand why Naruto and Sasuke are better fathers to each other's firstborn than to their own, but oh well. I just need someone to explain to me why Naruto shafting his kids is unforgivable in Boruto's eyes, yet Sasuke doing it to Sakura and Sarada was never an issue for Boruto. Either it's Sasuke's plot armor at work again, or more likely, Boruto is selectively self-absorbed and knew nothing about Sarada's home life, which based on Gaiden seems accurate. Which is annoying because on the main team, we still have teammates who know virtually nothing about each other, and with their parents all being friends, there really is no excuse for it this time. Mitsuki is the only exception, because Orochimaru, that's why.


	3. Salada of the Grass, Part 2

Notes: Due to recent episodes of Shippudden, I decided to go ahead and post this, unhappy with both as I am, before I lost the will to do so entirely. I thought it was just Boruto that was wrecking my love of Naruto. But I never counted on Shippudden forcibly reminding me that once upon a time, Orochimaru used to be cool... by insisting on showing me how uncool they've made him right now.

Chapter Summary: Sarada, and her little brother, attempt to adjust to life with Salada and Karin.

* * *

 **Springtime for Sarada**

 **A Naruto Fanfic by**

 **Nate Grey (xman0123-at-aol-dot-com)**  
 **Chapter 3: Salada of the Grass, Part 2**

* * *

Sakura had agreed to name her first son after his paternal uncle, in accordance with Sasuke's wishes. Perhaps it was fate that the boy was already showing signs of surpassing his namesake.

Mere days after his birth, he displayed an eerily accurate ability to sense his family's individual chakra signatures. Sakura was proud, until the boy learned to crawl, and then followed her when she left for work, or tailed Sarada to the academy. They always found him, eventually, as he simply didn't have the stamina to follow them for long, and a baby wandering the streets alone tended to attract attention fast. Sarada volunteered to take him to the academy with her, just so they would always know where he was. And while it shouldn't have worked out so easily, it did: he was content to be near Sarada, and it was ridiculously easy to convince female classmates to watch him while Sarada was training nearby.

He had thankfully grown out of that phase, once he was old enough to realize he was not being abandoned daily. Still, he liked to know where everyone in his family was supposed to be, so that he could find them quickly in case they ended up elsewhere against their will. To date, this had never happened, and he liked to think that was because of him.

* * *

The two women stared at each other for several minutes, saying nothing.

Finally, Sakura decided that she had to say it then, or she might never. "I never thanked you for that first day that we met."

Karin's eyebrows rose in question. "What do you mean?"

"When Sasuke told me to kill you, and you saved me. You didn't have to warn me that he was going to kill me."

Karin looked away. "You still would have died. Kakashi saved you, not me. I just gave you a chance, and not much of one."

"It's more than Sasuke did that day." Sakura took a deep breath and slowly released it. "I've always wanted to ask you. Did you do it because you didn't want him to kill me? Or because you couldn't stand to see me take your place at his side?"

"What do you care? We were enemies then."

"We were women who had been betrayed by the same man in the same day. Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

Karin sneered at her. "Well, if that meant anything to either of us, then why are we standing here now, each of us with a child by the same bastard who tried to kill us? And are you really telling me that you don't care that Sasuke was obviously cheating on you with me just after he got you pregnant?"

Sakura frowned at her. "I was hoping you would tell me that you didn't find out about that until later."

Karin smirked. "Oh, I knew. I just didn't care. He was mine for as long as I had him."

"Just long enough to knock you up and leave."

Karin's smugness vanished. "Look, if you-!"

"Why are we fighting?" Sakura interrupted. "He's the one who did this."

"Actually, he's not. We both chose to stay instead of walking away. And that's after he tried to kill us both."

Sakura sighed. "I don't want to hate you."

Karin glared. "I don't want to like you."

Sakura blinked in shock. "Are you saying that you do like me?"

Karin scowled at her. "Shut up," she grumbled.

Sakura shook her head. "Our girls don't want to lose touch. I don't think they should have to, just because you and I have issues with each other. So, I'm open to... whatever, if you are. For their sake."

"Oh, so now it's my fault if things don't work out between us?" Karin demanded.

Sakura groaned. "If you don't make an effort, and I do? Yes, it is!"

Karin grunted. "Fine! We'll work... something out later!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

Sakura decided to make a peace offering. "Naruto was Sasuke's first kiss. Sasuke actually put himself under genjutsu to erase the memory. But he forgot to erase the memories of everyone who saw it first. So we all know, and he doesn't."

Karin stared at her for a long moment. "I think I could learn to like you, Sakura."

* * *

Sarada had fallen asleep shortly after her mother left, so Salada decided to leave her alone for a while. Just outside the room, she ran into the Hokage, and they talked. Salada was surprised by how comfortable she was around him, even before she found out he was Sarada's godfather. He was friendly, funny, and easy to talk to. Honestly, she kept forgetting he was the Hokage, which would probably get her into trouble later on.

Salada abruptly became aware of a rapidly approaching chakra signature. As she had inherited much of her mother's sensor abilities, she could tell right away that the person was young and fire-natured. Since the Hokage did not react, she assumed he knew the child, so she didn't react, either.

Although when the boy came hurtling around the corner, flung himself at Salada, and buried his face in her side, she thought perhaps someone should have reacted.

"Nee-chan!" the boy sobbed, clinging to her. "You're okay!"

Salada shot a confused glance at the Hokage, who shrugged, and then hesitantly put her arm around the boy. "Um, I think you're confused." She glanced at the bedroom where Sarada was sleeping, and then back at the boy. "Hey, by any chance, are you Sarada's little brother?"

The boy stopped crying and lifted his head, allowing Salada to see the now obvious family resemblance. "Yeah." After getting a good look at her, he frowned thoughtfully. "You're not nee-chan," the boy said slowly, but he did not release her. "Not exactly, anyway."

"Well, there's a funny story behind that," Salada began, but the Hokage touched her shoulder to stop her.

"Chi-chan, you could tell Sarada was on this floor, and you just assumed there wouldn't be someone else who looked like her around here, right?" the Hokage asked.

The boy nodded, rubbing the tears from his eyes with his forearm.

Naruto pointed at the bedroom. "She's in there, but she's sleeping, so you have to be quiet."

"Okay." The boy gave Salada another long, curious look before letting her go. Then he bowed to Naruto and quickly headed into the bedroom.

"She didn't mention having a cute little brother," Salada grumbled, looking jealous.

Naruto grinned. "I'm sure it would have come up eventually. Probably at dinner."

"And his name's Chi?"

"Nickname," Naruto corrected absently, clearly out of habit. "His proper name is Itachi."

Salada blinked, her face going slightly pale. "Uh... you're joking, right?"

"He was named for his uncle, who you clearly don't know the whole story behind. Maybe if things work out after dinner, Sarada can tell you more, one day."

* * *

Dinner was a complicated affair. Not just because of the delicate subject matter being discussed, but because of the exercise in futility that was the seating chart. In her time as a Hokage's wife, Hinata had become something of an expert in knowing exactly where to place guests in order to achieve maximum comfort during tense situations, and even she was stumped. Further proof, she insisted, that trying to clean up Sasuke's brand of mess deserved triple S-rank pay and benefits. He had managed to upset so many people so thoroughly that there was just no way to get them all through a simple dinner, at least not while they were all in the same room.

That, as it turned out, was the key. Karin, now indirectly responsible for injuring the Hokage's goddaughter, even if it was supposedly covered by the usual chunin exam protection laws, understood she was no longer negotiating from a place of power. That was a good way to get her concerns dismissed.

Naruto did not trust himself to be impartial, so he left negotiating for the Uzumaki in Hinata's hands. She had no history or relation to Karin, and would be far less likely to be influenced.

Neither of them wanted Sasuke present, so, wisely, he was not invited. And knowing him better than most, Naruto felt certain that Sasuke would not have shown up even if he had been invited.

The children were another issue. Considering what Salada had already done to Sarada, Hinata did not want her anywhere near the Uzumaki children. Sakura was less paranoid, since Sarada had been healed and seemed mostly fine. Since Naruto had been the one to invite Salada to dinner in the first place, he finally had to suggest the wildly unpopular idea of Sakura, Sarada, Itachi, and Salada eating in a separate room entirely. Karin caved first, admitting that she trusted Sakura to keep an eye on Salada. Sakura eventually gave in, as she hadn't wanted to miss the negotiations, but had to be content with the knowledge that Karin and Salada belonging to an outside clan that Sasuke had no control over was for the best. That, and since her child had been injured on Naruto's watch, he would not allow them to be inconvenienced any further, in theory.

Perhaps sensing how tense the adults were, the children were on their best behavior. Salada in particular was extra polite, something she was clearly not used to being, if Sakura's hunch was right. At least, Sakura could not imagine that it was something Salada had inherited, learned, or even seen from either of her parents. And surely if there was a new, respectable man in Karin's life, she would have bragged about him the first chance she got.

To Sakura's relief, the children mostly watched themselves. Or rather, Sarada and Itachi kept fairly quiet while Salada fired off question after question at Sakura, who did her best to answer them all. Karin had apparently told Salada very little about Sakura, which was simultaneously a relief and a curse, since it meant Sakura was basically interviewing for a position she had no desire to obtain.

About an hour into dinner, Sarada noticed that Itachi was staring at her. This was nothing new: Itachi was a very thoughtful and observant child, and often stared when he was carefully studying something or someone. Still, he had known her for all of his life, so there shouldn't have been anything about her that he hadn't noticed before.

"You're different, nee-chan," Itachi finally said, then went back to picking at his vegetables.

"Different how?" Sarada asked.

"Your chakra. It's different."

This made Sarada pause and frown. If any other child had told her this, she would have ignored it. But Itachi had been especially sensitive to familiar chakra for all of his life. If he said her chakra was different, then it was.

"What's different about it?" Sarada prompted.

Itachi shrugged. "There's more. But only a little more. And it feels different. Not bad. Just different."

"Does this have anything to do with why you thought Salada was me earlier?"

"No. I followed your chakra, and I thought the first person who looked like you, would be you. Once I had a chance to think about it, I could tell the difference. Her chakra is wilder, like flowers in a field. Yours is calmer, like flowers in a vase. But yours is a little wild now, like hers."

Sarada frowned. "You don't seem worried."

Itachi shook his head. "You already have the same blood as her. Your chakra being the same is hardly any different from that, right?"

"Actually, it is. If we had different chakra natures before, then there's no telling what might-"

"So just ask Himawari to look at you," Itachi suggested. "She could see if anything was wrong."

That was only half-true. Between the two of them, certainly it was possible. But while Himawari had the ability to see a problem, she lacked the knowledge Sarada had to correctly identify it as such. Yet she was still the only Byakugan user that Sarada knew who could be convinced to help without asking any questions or telling anyone else what they were doing. Sarada didn't want to alarm her mother unless it was necessary, and especially not if blame would ultimately fall on Salada or Karin. Although it was still very likely that one or both of them was responsible for the change in Sarada's chakra, she was not yet ready to label this a hostile act.

* * *

"I'm really, really sorry about this, Hinata," Naruto said for what had to be the forty-fifth time that day, and the sixth time since they'd entered their bedroom that evening.

Hinata smiled, shook her head, and kissed him. "How many times must I say it, Naruto? I don't blame you for any of this."

"Because you blame Sasuke."

"So you were paying attention. Good."

"Hinata, he's my best friend."

She nodded. "Which in no way changes the fact that he caused all of this. I won't deny that he's helped the village. I'm only saying that he causes nearly as many problems as he solves. So if you were at all surprised by today's events, as your wife I would suggest that you retire immediately and let me do all of the thinking for both of us from now on."

Naruto grinned. "Okay, now you're just being mean."

"And yet still nowhere near as troublesome as Sasuke. Which is my point."

"Okay, point officially received. Can we talk about something else, please?"

"Sure. Do you think I was fair to Karin?"

Naruto shrugged. "I guess so. I don't know what she expected, but I doubt she'd get more from anyone than you gave her. She gets to be head of her branch clan, we get to do unannounced inspections for a year to ensure that the Uzumaki name is in no way being damaged. Not that I think she would on purpose, but we can't confirm or deny that she's cut all ties with Orochimaru. And I can't even say with confidence that it would be a bad thing if she was still working with him. So long as you catch him on a good day, he's extremely useful."

"Just like his favorite student," Hinata added in an overly bright tone.

Naruto groaned. "Okay, I walked right into that one."

"Yes, you did. You let me know when you want to retire, darling."

"Not funny, Hinata!"

"I respectfully and lovingly disagree, Hokage-sama. Now, come to bed. For some reason, I am in the mood to ensure that our clan remains larger than Karin's."

"We've already got a head start."

"And I'd like to keep it that way." Hinata paused and gave a hard stare. "Are you really complaining about sleeping with me?"

"...you're right, you should do the thinking from now on," Naruto agreed.

* * *

Himawari shook her head and removed her hand from Sarada's bare back. "I'm sorry, but I don't see any differences. Your chakra is the same as the last time I checked it a few days ago."

"Are you sure?" Sarada asked. "My brother was so certain."

With a shrug, Himawari sat down beside her on the bed. "If he said so, then I believe him. He's never wrong when it comes to his family. Maybe he was able to sense something that I just can't see. Or don't know that I'm seeing. I can guess why you asked me instead of my mother, but maybe you should reconsider. This seems important."

"No, it's probably nothing to worry about." Sarada pulled her shirt back on and moved to the door. "Thanks, Himawari. Sorry to bother you."

Himawari waved at her back. "Anytime, Sarada. I don't mind if it's for my brother's team." Once the door clicked shut, she pressed both hands to her belly, lining her fingertips up with certain chakra points. "Time to keep your promise, Kurama. Tell me why you had me lie to Sarada."

"First things first," Kurama replied in a voice that seemed to come from every direction. "What did you actually see?"

"That attack left some iron shavings in Sarada's body, and they're rapidly dissolving. I bet they weren't extracted because no one wanted to mention surgery if it wasn't absolutely necessary, and because the assumption was that Salada and Sarada were closely related enough that Salada's chakra would not prove harmful to Sarada, outside of combat. In a few hours, any traces of Salada's chakra will have been fully absorbed into Sarada's chakra. Now, why did you have me hide that from her?"

"Because she doesn't need to know yet. Never trust an Uchiha with a secret power increase. It was a secret for a reason."

"But we don't know enough about Salada to trust her, do we?"

Kurama chuckled. "Speaking from personal experience, I'd rather take my chances with trusting an Uzumaki any day. Wouldn't you?"

"You have a point. Okay, I won't tell Sarada, for now. Goodnight, Kurama." As the fox's presence faded, Himawari wondered, yet again, exactly how a piece of his consciousness had gotten inside of her. She had a fairly good theory, as she knew where babies came from, but nowhere in any book had she read anything about a tailed beast being partially transmitted that way. And the same also did not appear to be true for her brother, but it was possible that, like her, he would have kept it to himself.

* * *

Young Itachi possessed a gift for asking incredibly awkward questions. If not for the fact that this was entirely unintentional, he would have been labeled a true menace.

"Do I have to listen to Karin-san now?" he asked the moment Sakura and Sarada got him home.

"No," Sakura said firmly. At Sarada's questioning look, Sakura decided to explain further. "She's Salada's mother, not yours. I make the rules for you two."

"But if she's nee-san's mother, then-"

"We just established that she is NOT my mother," Sarada interrupted.

"I wasn't talking about you, nee-chan," Itachi pointed out.

"Yes, you were!"

Itachi shook his head. "She's nee-san. You're nee-chan."

"Since when?!" Sarada demanded.

Itachi seemed confused by how upset she was getting. "Since today, when I found out I had another sister and needed to call her something," he pointed out.

"Why does she get to be nee-san, then?"

"Because I love you more. I barely know her."

Sarada's expression softened. "Chi-chan," she murmured fondly, reaching over to rub her brother's head.

Sakura cleared her throat. "As I was saying. You are my kids, so you listen to me. If the day ever comes that I want you listening to anyone else, I'll tell you myself. As far as Karin and Salada go, I still haven't figured that out. But it seems like they want to be allies of the village, so for now, we're friendly. If you want to get to know them, that's fine. If you'd rather keep your distance from them, that's fine, too."

"What are you going to do?" Itachi asked.

"I'm going to bed. And so are you two, since it's late and one of you is on bed rest for at least the next three days, no matter how healed she thinks she is."

Sarada pouted. "Mom, I got impaled. I think we'd know if I wasn't healed. I'd be leaking."

Sakura smirked. "Saying things like that earns you a night of sleeping in my room where I can keep an eye on you. You want to try for two?"

"She gets to sleep with you and I don't?" Itachi whined.

Sakura patted his head. "In this case, it's supposed to be a punishment, Itachi."

"I ran away from Ino-san, remember?" Itachi volunteered. "I need punishment, too!"

"He's not wrong," Sarada agreed with a laugh.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "You can both stop trying to convince me, I didn't say he couldn't. And I'm not going to stand in the way of your supporting each other. I only wish I'd had that as a kid."

"Didn't Ino-san support you back then?" Itachi asked.

"Uh, no," Sakura chuckled. "Certainly not in the way she does now. We grew into being better friends as we matured. Well, as I matured, anyway."

* * *

Every morning, before she did anything else, Salada recited the same mantra three times.

"I have been blessed with the body of the greatest Sage. It is my invincible temple, and under my absolute control. No outside force will breach it, unless I allow it. It will never weaken, unless I allow it. It can never be defeated, unless I allow it."

It was the first thing that her mother had ever made her memorize, and Salada had come to believe in it wholeheartedly. She had been sick only once as far as she knew, and even that had been a "superbug" that her mother developed and infected her with, to test her resistance. In sixteen hours, the bug was out of her system. Salada had been lead to believe that the other test subjects had not faired nearly as well. She would have been fine with just being told that. So of course her mother had insisted on Salada actually seeing the corpses.

In any other family, that might have been considered abnormal. But Salada had grown up with bedtime stories such as the following:

"Grandma died because too many people drained too much chakra from her, in order to heal their wounds. I have the same ability, but I am never going to use it on you. If I get too weak, I can't take care of you. If you get too weak, you will die. Your body must always be strong, Salada. Stronger than mine, and stronger than Grandma's."

It had been scary, the first few times. But Salada's body was strong, and it did largely heal itself in rapid fashion, so she had learned never to depend on her mother for healing. She did not actually believe that her mother would allow her to die, if it came down to that, but she understood the lesson all the same.

She would depend on her own strength alone. She would lend her power only to those worthy of it. And she would take her own life before she ended up the way her grandmother had.

* * *

"Your mom is totally cheating on this bet," Ino complained. "I mean, the deal was I'd have to watch Chi-chan, not you."

"That sounded suspiciously like an insult," Sarada noted, calmly licking her spoon. "And are you forgetting that you lost him yesterday? Being asked to watch the older child is a serious demotion. You're lucky Mom still trusts you with either of us."

Ino completely ignored her. "I mean, don't get me wrong. If I got to sit in bed and eat ice cream every time I went on a babysitting job, I would have happily been doing D-ranks until-"

"You do remember that I'm the one that's supposed to be bedridden and eating the ice cream, right?" Sarada interrupted.

Ino elbowed her gently. "Shut up, I gave you plenty!"

"But your bowl is bigger."

"I'm doing all the work!"

"You're doing the exact same thing as me: sitting in my bed, eating ice cream that Mom bought for me. The only difference is you have more ice cream."

"Cut your Auntie Ino some slack. You and your brother pretty much watch yourselves. This is boring."

"I will remember this on your next birthday," Sarada promised.

"So," Ino said softly. "What's she like?"

"What's who like?"

"Your evil twin."

Sarada rolled her eyes. "She's far from evil."

"I heard she tried to turn you into a Sarada-on-a-stick."

"That was partially my fault. Besides, the rod was six feet long. Only about five inches actually went in."

Ino pouted. "You're not really giving me much gossip to work with here, kid."

"There really isn't much to tell. She apologized. Even offered to let me impale her back."

"That's... morbidly sweet?"

"She seemed pretty serious. I can't decide if she's been impaled before, or if she just felt really bad."

"So you forgave her?" Ino demanded.

"It was an accident and my fault. I don't deserve to be a chunin if I can be distracted that easily. And honestly, I would have been distracted no matter what, once I found out who she was. Better that I lost to her now, than to someone stronger and more determined to hurt me in the finals."

"You must really like her."

Sarada blinked and glanced at Ino, who was staring at her. "Hey. Stay out of my head."

"I'm not in your head. It's written all over your face."

"I'm allowed to like her. Mom said so. Salada isn't an enemy."

"I have a cousin that's been asking me out since we were kids. He's not an enemy, either, and impaling him is one of the nicer ways I can think of to turn him down."

* * *

When Sakura had said she wanted to get along for the sake of their daughters, Karin had only believed her so much. It was just something one woman would say to another woman who had slept with her man, or at least Karin had thought so at the time.

So when Sakura and Itachi showed up to Karin's hotel room early the following morning, fresh off a grocery run and intending to cook breakfast, Karin genuinely had no idea how to react. Thankfully, Salada let them in, and soon the kitchen bore more than enough proof that Sakura was a decent cook. Itachi managed not to burn anything, mostly because he only set the table.

Rather noticeable by her absence was Sarada. Sakura admitted that while she had complete faith in Karin's ability to heal (both Sasuke and Tsunade owed their lives to it, after all), she hadn't wanted to take any risks with Sarada's recovery. But Sakura also made it clear that Sarada was able to have visitors, including family, extended or otherwise. Salada appreciated the hint, but Karin did not react at all. She suspected they were firmly in the "otherwise" category.

Once breakfast was done, Sakura offered to clean up the dishes. Much to her surprise, Karin insisted on helping, and told Salada to entertain Itachi while they worked.

For the first few minutes, the two women said nothing, and merely worked: Sakura washed and rinsed, while Karin dried.

"You didn't have to do this," Karin said abruptly.

"Would you believe me, if I said I did it because I wanted to?" Sakura asked.

"I could believe you did this for Sarada."

"Would that be so bad?"

"No. But I'd prefer that you were honest about it."

"Then, honestly? I like you and Salada a lot more than I like Sasuke right now, and I think all of our lives would be easier if you and I could get along. But I couldn't think of a single thing that I could give you, or that you might want or need from me. Making you breakfast was all Itachi's idea."

"It was a nice gesture," Karin admitted. "Salada really enjoyed it. As for something I want? It would be nice, not to have to stay in a hotel every time we come here."

"You want to stay at our place?" Sakura asked in shock.

"I didn't say that," Karin snapped. "I said I don't want to stay in a hotel. Anything better than that would be appreciated."

"Oh." Sakura thought for a moment. "If you would consider letting Salada stay with us, then I'm sure Naruto would be willing to arrange something for you."

"You're sure of that, are you?" Karin asked suspiciously.

Sakura frowned at her. "We'll play nice if you do."

"I suppose that's true enough. Fine. If Salada agrees to it, then-"

"Do I get my own room, or can I bunk with Sarada?" Salada asked eagerly, pushing her way between the two women.

* * *

The day before Naruto was appointed Hokage, Shikamaru tied him to a chair and had a very long talk with him. What the lecture boiled down to was that Naruto, strong as he was, had plenty of weaknesses, and it was Shikamaru's job to identify and deal with them. In the most ideal cases, the weaknesses could simply be eliminated.

The first and largest weaknesses on the list were Sasuke and Sakura. They could not be eliminated, obviously. And dealing with them effectively was just shy of impossible.

Sakura, at least, could be convinced not to exploit her bond with Naruto to excess. And even she had been known to pout or bat her eyes at him for purely selfish reasons. Likewise, Shikamaru had actually witnessed and even allowed some of those moments without complaint, because Sakura knew exactly how to exploit his greatest weakness, which was Temari, and Shikamaru was just whipped enough to proudly admit that.

Sasuke was another matter entirely. It was not so much that he exploited his bond with Naruto, so much as Naruto allowed and encouraged him to. It was true enough that Sasuke worked well alone, and the kinds of things he typically handled were best left off the record. But as this latest mess had proven, leaving Sasuke to his own devices without some sort of supervision was just stupid, especially for a Hokage who had known Sasuke since they were kids, and thus should have known better.

Naruto never went back on his word. He would love Sasuke like a brother until the day one of them died. But when that day came, Naruto intended for his village to still be intact, and not burned to the ground by angry abandoned Uchiha spawn. And fortunately, if Sasuke wasn't going to keep an eye on his brood, then Naruto knew someone that not only would, but already had. Unfortunately, having to depend on that person was a problem in itself...

* * *

Despite current popular opinion, Sasuke was no fool. The moment he recognized that Karin and Salada were in the village, he went into survival mode, and before Sakura found out. So by the time she knew, Sasuke was already in stealth mode.

A lesser man would have gone into hiding. Sasuke went into stealth mode.

At the moment, stealth mode called for hiding in some abandoned ANBU barracks.

The problem with being in stealth mode, however, was that it meant that Sasuke had to draw on the very best years of his training. Which meant many of the things he had learned from Orochimaru. Which meant that if anyone could find Sasuke while he was in stealth mode, it would be Orochimaru.

Which sort of explained why Sasuke woke up to find Orochimaru staring down at him. But only sort of.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke demanded, more annoyed than alarmed.

"I am being smug, Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru replied with a grin. "You remember how well I do that. And if you had bothered to apply any of the lessons I gave you on planning ahead, you could be smug right now, too. Instead, you're hiding in here. Which I would applaud, if it weren't from your own wife."

"What are you doing here, inside the village?" Sasuke clarified.

"That is yet another question you would not need to ask if you had paid more attention during my lessons," Orochimaru noted with increasing amusement. "Clearly, I did not do as good a job of training you as I first thought. Kabuto would have had tea for two ready by the time I got here."

Sasuke shook his head. "There is no way that Naruto knows you're here right now."

"Of course he doesn't. If he knew I was here right now, then he would also know that you are here right now. And as he does not strike me as someone that is able to withhold information from your wife, she would also be here right now." Orochimaru shook his head in disgust. "Really, Sasuke-kun, I am begging you to stop and think more than three seconds ahead. It is not as difficult as you make it seem."

"Go be smug somewhere else. I'm not in the mood."

"And what would be the point of my being smug with someone who was in the mood for it? This refusal of yours to think is really starting to concern me."

Sasuke glared at him. "If you do not give me a decent explanation as to why you are here, right now, bothering me, I will devote all of my current stress into killing you again. I have no doubt you'd survive it, but you would still be extremely inconvenienced."

Orochimaru chuckled in far too relaxed a manner, for having just been threatened with death by a former pupil. "While I admit to being mildly entertained by your current drama, my first priority is in waiting for a potential customer to see the error of his ways, and accept my business proposal. I plan to be here at least until that happens. I also want to see how far my Mitsuki advances in the exams. He's doing better than your spawn, at least. The legitimate one, that is."

"Your sense of humor is both noted and not at all appreciated. Do me a favor and leave me alone now."

"If you like," Orochimaru agreed, turning to exit. "But I thought I would do you a better favor and offer you sanctuary once more. I am happy to hide you in one of my many hideouts. That is what they're for. Which you would not need me to remind you of, if you would only-"

"I heard you the first time!" Sasuke snapped.

"If that were true, Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru replied mournfully as he vanished from view, "neither of us would be here right now."

* * *

Mitsuki lived in a modest apartment in a decent part of the village. Although he was frugal as a rule, the rent was easy enough to manage, and he could splurge every now and then without having reason to worry about funds. His neighbors kept to themselves. It was more or less a perfect home life.

At the same time, Mitsuki understood that nearly everything he had in Konoha was a result of who his parent was, and who the Hokage was. He did not understand their relationship at all, however, and had never actually seen them speak to each other in person. It did not seem like the best of ideas, considering Orochimaru's infamous status nearly everywhere. Mitsuki feared that they might feel obligated to attack each other. But he also knew there was nothing he could do to stop them if they did.

Naturally, when Mitsuki opened his door to find Naruto standing patiently with an awkward smile, he was equal parts surprised and horrified, yet did his best to conceal this.

"Hokage-sama," Mitsuki murmured, bowing his head. "You honor me with-"

"I really need to talk to your, uh, parent, if I could," Naruto interrupted. "It's important. And time-sensitive. Now would be great, actually."

Mitsuki stared at him. "I can deliver a message, if you-"

They both froze, upon noticing a large snake winding its body around Mitsuki's left leg. It looked fairly venomous, to say the least.

"That your summon?" Naruto asked.

"No," Mitsuki said firmly.

"His, then?"

Mitsuki blinked. "I didn't invite either of them in, if that's what you mean."

"I would be shocked if you had. Or if he had waited for you to." He directed his attention to the snake. "Tell Orochimaru I want to talk, and there's a mouse in it for you."

The snake hissed at him, but quickly uncurled from Mitsuki's leg and slithered back into the apartment.

"How did you know that would work?" Mitsuki asked, moving aside to let Naruto in.

"I figured they operate the same way my summons do," Naruto replied. "Feed them and they don't complain as much. I'm just glad that was a relatively small snake. I don't carry spare bodies on me. Well, not the kind they eat."

"You don't need to worry about that, Naruto-kun," Orochimaru said as he emerged from Mitsuki's bathroom. "My pets know they aren't allowed to feast inside the village. As we agreed."

"Did we agree? Or did you give in?"

Orochimaru smiled. "Am I correct in assuming you have had a chance to rethink my offer?"

"Yes." Naruto glanced at Mitsuki. "Maybe we shouldn't talk in front of him."

"I'm afraid I must insist. He can keep secrets. Mine, anyway. You were saying?"

Naruto frowned, but knew he had little choice. "I know you've been keeping tabs on Sasuke. What is it going to cost me to have access to those tabs?"

Orochimaru's grin widened. "Finally, a student who actually wants to learn from me. I had almost given up hope."

* * *

"MOOOOOOOOOOM!"

Sakura destroyed her bedroom door and much of the hallway in her frenzied response to that cry. It was a horrible way to wake up, with the certainty that one of her children was in mortal danger and needed her.

Worse, that cry had come from both children.

Sakura had never felt more like a bull in a china shop as she crashed through a wall and landed in the kitchen, only to find the last thing she had ever expected to see.

Sarada and Itachi were pressed firmly into a corner, clutching each other in fear. Just a few feet from them were three adult bears.

Sakura's mind momentarily went into question mode. How did three bears get into her kitchen? How did even one bear get into her kitchen? She forced those questions away, and took in the scene again, only to have a very curious detail leap out at her.

All three bears were pink. Like her hair. As in they were the EXACT same shade of pink as her hair. As in these bears basically had her hair for fur.

Shaking her head slightly, Sakura quickly became aware of another fact: the bears weren't acting like bears. Granted, in her life, she had thankfully had precious few encounters with bears. And yet she still knew enough to know that if they found themselves in a kitchen, three bears would never walk in a perfect circle pattern, sniffing the floor occasionally.

Reminding herself that she was indeed a ninja girl in a ninja world, Sakura focused her thoughts and looked at her kids. "Did they talk?" she asked.

Itachi stared at her blankly, obviously lost, but Sarada instantly understood. "No," she replied. "And they didn't respond when we asked them to please go away, either. That's when we yelled for you."

"Did they threaten you? Or at least seem angry?" Sakura pressed.

"No," Itachi admitted, even more confused. "Actually, they seem kinda lost. Like they don't know what a kitchen is, or why they're in one. But, you know, they're bears, so... kinda scary still."

"Did you see where they came from?"

Sarada shook her head. "I got up to get some water, and Chi-chan heard me, so he followed me. We had only been in here for a minute or so when Chi-chan saw the first bear by the couch. It saw us see it, and followed us, and then the other two bears followed it. I think they were already in the house when we got up. But once they got in here, they just started circling like this."

Sakura wasn't sure how to take that. As a rule, a bear could not help but make noise in a house, given their size, curiosity, and unfamiliarity with being in a house. The idea that three bears could be in their house while the family was sound asleep was impossible.

But then, so were pink bears.

Sakura whistled sharply.

The bears ignored her.

Sakura stomped her feet.

The bears ignored her.

Sakura shouted, "Stupid pink bears!"

The bears ignored her.

Sakura hesitated, then moved closer.

The bears ignored her.

Sakura slowly stretched out her hand and got as close as she dared without more information.

All the bears paused, and the closest one sniffed in the direction of her extended hand. After two seconds, all three bears went back to circling.

Puzzled, Sakura stepped back. "They're the weirdest bears I've ever seen, summons or not."

"If they're summons, can you make them leave?" Itachi asked.

Sakura shook her head. "I'm not their summoner. Despite all appearances to the contrary. The only other way I know of is to damage them to the point where they're dismissed. But attacking them isn't the best idea, seeing as how they're currently calm."

"Why are they calm?" Sarada asked. "Shouldn't they be... alert, at least? Since we're right here with them?"

"In theory." Sakura took a piece of candy from the counter, unwrapped it, and rolled it across the floor. The candy rolled right past the lowered nose of a bear, who made no attempt to sniff or go after it, and rolled into Sarada's waiting hand.

"They should have at least smelled that, right?" Sarada asked.

Sakura nodded. "Even a bear who wasn't hungry should have smelled that. But at least they don't seem to want food. Or us."

"But they followed us," Itachi pointed out.

"They're not following you now. Although they did sniff me. Let me try something." Sakura made a Shadow Clone and had it walk past the bears at normal speed.

Again, the bears paused and sniffed at the clone as it passed them, but then went back to circling.

"I'm going to have my clone walk you past one at a time," Sakura said. "Sarada? You'll be okay by yourself?"

"Yeah," Sarada said after a pause. "So long as they keep not caring I'm here."

Itachi took the hand of Sakura's clone, and together they walked past the bears. Again, the bears paused and sniffed them, but otherwise didn't seem to care.

With Itachi safely at her side, Sakura sent the clone back to Sarada without incident. For no reason that she could explain, however, she knew the next attempt would not be so easy.

Sarada and Sakura's clone began their attempt, with the clone between Sarada and the bears. Again, the bears paused and sniffed. The only difference was that they sniffed for a few seconds longer than they had previously. And then the first bear lumbered after Sarada, like a rather oversized dog. The other two began to follow.

"Stop!" Sakura ordered.

Sarada and the clone stopped. It took the bears a second to realize they had, but they stopped as well. They did not begin circling again, however, and instead stayed lined up as they were. Behind Sarada. Who was quickly picking up on the same pattern Sakura was.

"Mom?" Sarada asked, sounding more than a little scared. "I swear I didn't sign a contract without your permission."

Just to be sure, Sakura dispelled her clone.

The bears ignored this.

"Come to me, honey," Sakura said.

Taking a deep breath, Sarada walked to Sakura.

The bears followed, without even sniffing first. Again, when Sarada stopped moving, instead of circling, the bears lined up in front of her.

"What do they want from me?" Sarada asked desperately.

"Try touching one," Sakura suggested.

Sarada looked at her with obvious fear.

"I think it's pretty clear they aren't normal bears, and they aren't going to attack if we don't," Sakura explained.

Sarada hesitantly stretched out her hand. The closest bear dipped its head and licked her fingers. Sarada let out a little shriek and jerked her hand away. The bear raised its head but did otherwise not react to this.

"Don't do that, nee-chan! You hurt her feelings and she was just being friendly!" Itachi complained. Before anyone could think to stop him, he stepped forward and reached up to pet the first bear.

Again, the bear dipped its head and sniffed at his hand, and made no move to prevent it as Itachi began to gently pat its neck.

"How do you know it's a girl?" Sarada demanded.

"Isn't it obvious?" Itachi asked, grinning at Sakura. "They're Mama Bears!"

"Just because they're pink?" Sarada asked.

"I didn't say anything before, because I didn't think it mattered, but check this out!" Itachi again reached out to the first bear and brushed aside the shaggy fur that had so far hidden their eyes. Sakura was more unnerved than anyone to find that exact same shade of green gazing back at her, through what was unmistakably a Rinnegan.

"A green Rinnegan?" she murmured. "Is that even possible?"

"I don't know what that is, but it must be possible for Mama Bears," Itachi insisted.

Sakura gave him an annoyed glance. "Itachi, they are not my bears."

"No, they're nee-chan's bears. But she made them look like you."

"I didn't make them!" Sarada protested. But even she sounded unsure.

"They do look like me," Sakura admitted, now feeling comfortable enough to pet the first bear as well. Again, it did not seem to mind the attention. "That can't be a coincidence."

Sarada frowned. "But I didn't do it! How do you even make bears?!"

"We should call them Sakura Cubs," Itachi decided. "Hey, just like us!"

"If you ever loved me, never name a bear after me," Sakura groaned.

"But it's a tribute! They're warm and nice to touch, and they'd tear anyone apart who messed with us. Just like you!"

"As usual, hard to argue with him," Sarada chuckled, earning a sharp glare from Sakura. "But if they really are my bears, then I get to name them: Blossom Bears."

"Aw, Sakura Cubs is way better!" Itachi complained.

Sakura ignored the minor argument that followed, because she was very much aware of the extremely rare ways in which anyone got the Rinnegan. And given what had just recently happened to Sarada, she didn't think any of that was a coincidence, either.

* * *

Darui would have been content to spend the rest of his shinobi career as a member of the Raikage's honor guard. Supposedly, that was what made him an excellent Raikage: he did not seek glory for himself, or desire anything that the village itself was unable to deliver. So long as his village was whole, and everyone else knew that their power was not to be underestimated, Darui was content.

Contentedness was not the same thing as carelessness, however. And Darui had not survived as long as he had by being thoughtless.

He genuinely liked Naruto, both as a person and a shinobi. He was funny, and there was no one more unpredictable or dependable in a fight. And he trusted Naruto, at least to the point where if Naruto gave his word, Darui typically took him at it.

Darui kept his word, as well, and did not give it lightly. So when he swore to his village that the Sharingan would never endanger it again, he had meant it.

Sasuke was reformed, or so Naruto said. But that was one of the few areas where Darui would never trust Naruto's word. They had nearly lost Killer Bee, and the world its whole way of life, because of Sasuke and the Sharingan. Never again.

Darui had sworn that his village had given up on the Byakugan, and they had. But only because they had devoted those former resources toward the Sharingan. Sasuke had made it too easy for them, really. His blood and DNA had been collected: from the site of his battle with Killer Bee, and then again during the war. They had learned enough from Kabuto and his zombie army. And what they didn't know, Orochimaru was willing to provide, for an inflated price. And no price was too much if security was the result.

If Darui needed any further sign that he had made the right call, it was seeing the international incident that Sasuke nearly made of the chunin exams. He laughed with Naruto about it later, but he also left Konoha reassured that his own village wouldn't be caught unprepared again.

* * *

Karin had asked the front desk of the hotel she was staying in for a wake-up call. What she got instead was Sakura punching the door off of its hinges.

"The next time you decide to give my daughter a doujutsu, run it by me first so that I have a chance to beat your brains in," Sakura growled, stomping in and hauling Karin up by the collar.

"I only have the one brain and can't spare it," Karin responded calmly.

"Then I swear I will beat it in right now, if you don't stop pretending that's what matters in this conversation."

"It's not as if I could have asked you for permission."

Sakura glared. "It's not as if you should have done it at all!"

"My daughter would prefer that her half-sister grows up with all the protection she may need," Karin replied. "I'm not sorry if you don't feel the same way."

"So you would be fine with it, if I crammed pills down your daughter's throat, in the hopes of creating a second personality?"

"Oh." Karin seemed startled. "Um... no?"

"Are you actually guessing?!" Sakura demanded.

"Well, it doesn't even sound like something you'd do! You caught me off guard!"

"Pink bears in my house caught me off guard, and that's your fault!"

"Wait, what?" Karin asked. "How did we go from force-feeding pills to pink bears?"

"Rinnegan problems," Sakura spat. "Which I didn't have until your daughter poisoned mine with whatever was in her blood. Honestly, only in my worst nightmares did I imagine that all Grass-nin were poisonous, and you seem to be determined to make all my nightmares real. The worst part is it's not something I can heal!"

"The Rinnegan is no more a disease than the Sharingan is," Karin protested.

Sakura gave her a flat stare. "The Sharingan is awakened by an emotional imbalance. That is a disease, even if no one likes to admit it. I dare you to name a single person with a Sharingan you've met that isn't at least a little insane."

"Are you including Sarada in that?"

"She wants to keep the pink bears. What do you think?"

"I think they're adorable!" Salada chirped as she emerged from bedroom, riding on the back of yet another pink bear.

Karin stared. It was obviously her first time having seen a pink bear. "Okay, that is very distracting. Also, it wasn't here a minute ago."

"Tell me about it." Sakura released her, then frowned. "Wait, if one is here, then they have to be summons. Sarada must be doing this subconciously."

"I should hope so. If she was purposely doing this, that is one kid with serious mommy issues."

"Actually, it's daddy issues," Salada disagreed. "If it was me, my bears would look like you, Mom. Of course we're going to imprint on the one parent that's always there for us."

"We're getting off the subject," Sakura said. "How do we dismiss the bears? At least temporarily? Sarada has no memory of signing a contract. Not to mention we have no idea where they'd go when they are dismissed."

Karin shrugged. "In case you haven't noticed, I don't have a Rinnegan, and even if I did, such a rare doujutsu isn't likely to come with instructions."

"Then maybe you can understand why I feel it was incredibly foolish of you to put it in my daughter when you have no clue how it works?!" Sakura asked heatedly.

"I have some clue," Karin snapped. "I'm... just not completely sure how the summons work. Or at least not how these summons work."

"And there's no one we can ask about it, except Sasuke. And I have never seen him use the Animal Path for anything, so there's no guarantee he knows anything."

"And if we're being totally honest, if it comes down to asking him for help, I think I'd rather just be stuck with pink bears for a while," Karin muttered.

Sakura stared at her. "Did you know I was about to say that, or not?"

Karin blinked. "No. But it wouldn't have surprised me at all."

* * *

"Pffft! Pink bears!"

"Not now, Kiba!"

Sakura was already regretting her decision to ask Inuzuka Kiba for help. It was not even that he knew much about summons. She just thought that in case the bears suddenly did start acting on their own, a few Inuzuka dogs might be useful in rounding them up, or failing that, tracking them down. Although she did not think it would be hard to spot a pink bear in the village.

In any case, they had gathered the four bears at the Inuzuka compound. The resident dogs were terribly interested, but kept their distance all the same. They did not seem scared, however, so Sakura just assumed they were well-trained and didn't question it too much.

Naruto was busy elsewhere, but sent a Shadow Clone to help out, as he had fought someone with a Rinnegan more than once.

Sarada had tried dismissing the bears on her own with no success. Just to be safe, Sakura had taught her how to summon and dismiss after the fact, complete with a demonstration, but the bears apparently did not work that way, or at least didn't want to leave. More troubling was the fact that they either would not or could not communicate with other summons. Even Sarada could not seem to command them to do anything. However, they did follow her when she was in sight, and at least tried to when she was not. If she got too far away, however, they simply stopped trying. And while the bears did not obey orders, anyone who apparently had Sarada's approval or concern could at least get them to walk short distances. Salada had been able to get her bear to stand up on its hind legs by mimicking the movement herself, but it was the only one who learned this trick.

They had been trying various ideas for nearly an hour when Katsuyu finally confirmed a piece of important information about the bears.

"They don't have minds," she announced. "At least, not in the traditional sense. It's why they don't respond when we talk to them, and probably why they can't be dismissed. I don't think they would know where to go in the first place."

"How could they not know where to go?" Sakura asked. "Where did they come from?"

"I have no idea. I have had dealings with bear summons before, and I can assure you that they were capable of communication, however unfriendly it was at the time. I don't think they came from anywhere. Sarada must have created them subconciously. And because it wasn't done on a concious level, they are incomplete beings. They recognize her as their creator, but they don't even know enough to obey her. I believe the only way to handle them is to have Sarada finish making them. At least to the point where they can follow her orders."

Armed with this new information, Sarada tried to complete the bears, but even that did not seem to have any impact. She simply had no idea how to edit a living creature. And despite their having no minds, she did consider the bears to be alive. It was just her fault that they were essentially brain-dead. An idea which began to bother her more and more after each unsuccessful attempt.

Without warning, Sarada simply burst into tears and threw her arms around one bear's neck. She begged and pleaded with it to go home. She apologized for not finishing it. She promised that she would give it a real purpose next time, so that they would be able to help each other.

The bear was unmoved. Although it did at least lick at Sarada's tears, though that was likely not driven by compassion.

It was then that Sasuke appeared at the edge of the compound, uninvited. He took in the scene in silence for a moment. Finally, he raised his voice. "Sarada. How do we say goodbye?"

Sarada stared at him, then gasped. She turned to the bear, shakily lifted two fingers, and tapped it lightly on the forehead. "Next time," she whispered. "Next time will be better."

The bear blinked. Then it vanished in a cloud of pink smoke.

The other three bears instantly vanished as well.

"That's IT?!" Karin demanded.

"That's it," Sakura confirmed softly, a light blush dusting her cheeks.

Sarada wiped her eyes and turned to thank her father, but he was already gone.

Salada was scowling at the place Sasuke had been in. She had not been impressed, plus she'd secretly been hoping to keep one of the bears.

* * *

After all of the excitement died down, Karin agreed to let Salada have a sleepover with Sarada. Sakura was not feeling especially charitable toward Karin, but did not want the girls to suffer. And in case the bears did return, Salada seemed to have the most luck with controlling any of them.

Itachi was very disappointed to learn that he was not allowed to participate in the sleeping portion of the sleepover. Sakura did not really have a firm reason in mind, she just wanted at least one of her kids close at hand. Itachi mistakenly assumed he was being banned because he was a boy, and loudly insisted that he had slept with Sarada plenty of times and could thus be trusted not to do anything perverted to Salada. Sakura patiently explained that this was not the reason, although it was hard to be heard over Salada's laughter.

Being alone gave the girls a chance to talk privately, during which Salada decided to open up a bit.

"So you were supposed to impale me? That was the plan all along?" Sarada asked.

"No!" Salada protested, grabbing her hand. "That was an accident!"

"But you _were_ supposed to get your chakra into me. So how did you plan to do that without impaling me?"

"I'll show you. _Without_ the impaling." Salada clapped her hands together, then slowly drew them apart, revealing a black needle between her palms. "See? It doesn't have to be rods. I can shape them into other things, but anything more complicated than this basic shape requires more effort and focus."

"And why is this the first time I'm seeing the needle?" Sarada demanded.

"Because if you had seen them during our match, you would know to look out for them. The plan was to distract you by throwing the rod, and then to get close and surprise you by scratching you with a needle. That's all I needed to transfer my chakra into you. Though, I guess the rod is a more effective delivery system for people who don't dodge."

Sarada glared at her.

Salada shrugged. "Well, it did work. Pink bears, remember?"

"I remember," Sarada snapped. "I just don't like that you planned this."

"Imagine how badly it _could_ have gone if there was no plan at all."

"You just said it was an accident."

Salada grinned. "Yes, and that was with a plan. Without one, I might have _killed_ you!" The grin melted off her face when she noticed the stunned look on Sarada's face. "Um, that sounded much funnier in my head."

"I really doubt it." Sarada sighed and leaned back in her chair. "Well, I won't thank you. You really screwed up my life here, with your planning and your doujutsu and your pink bears."

"Technically, only the plan was Mom's. And everything else was yours."

"Not my point."

"Well, you just learned how much trouble not being precise can get you into with a Rinnegan. You need the practice. I did, and I don't even have one."

"What about _anything_ you did here was precise? Please tell me, because I'm not seeing any of it."

"Um... I infected the right half-sister with my chakra!"

Sarada snorted. "You do remember that I'm your only half-sister?"

"Well, about that," Salada murmured nervously. "I don't really have any proof just yet, but..."

* * *

"There's a Sand genin with the Sharingan."

Darui looked up from the paperwork on his desk and instantly pushed the papers to the side. "Talk to me."

Omoi nodded and took a seat in front of the desk. "I got lost on my way out, and ran into this kid with a hood. Which isn't weird there, but it got jostled when I bumped into him, and I got a good look at his face."

"How do you know he's a genin?"

"Too old for Academy, too young for chunin, and he said, 'Watch it, pops!' before he ran off. Trust me, he's a genin. I bet he was purposely kept out of the chunin exams."

"To avoid exactly the kind of incident that Grass caused by sending their Uchiha offspring," Darui muttered. "Interesting."

"So what do we do, Boss?"

"'We' don't do anything. You keep your mouth shut. I will deal with this."

"Sure, but... what if more pop up?"

"Then you especially keep your mouth shut and especially let me deal with it."

"Boss, I'm starting to think you don't want my help with this."

"Omoi, you did good just to find this out and report back without getting detained. You've done enough. I have a team set aside for just this type of situation. They don't need any help."

* * *

Naruto had not enjoyed making a deal with Orochimaru. He rarely did, but not for the most obvious reasons. Orochimaru had repeatedly proven useful, to the point where it was difficult to hold an old grudge against him. After all, Sasuke had come home stronger and in one piece, and if not for Orochimaru, Tsunade would have died in the war.

It was what Orochimaru represented that caused Naruto the most problems. No matter what Orochimaru did now, his reputation always proceeded him, and it was simply impossible to change it, partially because Orochimaru had no desire to change it. No Hokage who wanted to keep their job could be seen openly dealing with such a person.

Still, it was important information. Important enough that dealing with Orochimaru, and all the risks that went along with that, had been worth it. Because even after he was armed with that information, Naruto found it was still possible to blindsided by Sasuke's infidelities. Although, at least with Orochimaru's information in hand, Naruto was not completely in the dark.

So when Kakashi summoned him to an underground bunker years later, Naruto had a rough idea of what he was walking into. He just hadn't realized how bad it would be.

The mistake that Sarutobi and Danzo had made was that they'd allowed their rivalry and bitter feelings to get in the way of their friendship, which had soured their working relationship. But Naruto and Kakashi understood there was no point in such feelings for each other. Naruto needed a person that was well-connected in ANBU to keep an eye on things, and Kakashi, despite his claims of wanting to enjoy his retirement, could still get things done from behind a desk that would have taken considerably longer for anyone else.

Kakashi had also not liked dealing with Orochimaru, for much the same reasons as Naruto. And yet, if the alternative was working against Orochimaru... it was just easier to swallow any distaste and move on.

So it was not too surprising, for Naruto to find Kakashi and Orochimaru discussing something when he arrived.

Gaara being there was a surprise, because his presence implied certain things that Naruto had hoped they would never have to admit to each other.

When Kakashi noticed Naruto, he cleared his throat. "Well, gentlemen. I'd like to clear this up as quickly and as quietly as we possibly can. So I'll tell you exactly what I know." He gestured to the prisoner, who was blindfolded and tied to a chair. "This person was spotted just within the Land of Wind's border a week ago. She bore no affiliation to any village, and when Sand-nin tried to capture her, she fled into the Land of Fire. She was caught by one of our patrol teams three days later. She is suspected of killing a certain Sand genin, who turned out to be an unofficial Uchiha scion. She has offered no information and has proven extremely resistant to usual methods of interrogation."

"I can confirm that she matches the description of the suspected killer," Gaara noted. After a long stare from Naruto, Gaara sighed. "And that the person killed was an unofficial Uchiha."

Naruto shook his head. There were many things he wanted to say to Gaara, but out of respect for their years of friendship, he would save them until they could speak privately. "I understand why Gaara is here. I'm not entirely sure why Orochimaru is here, unless you just thought he'd find this amusing, Kakashi."

Orochimaru smiled. "Should I speak freely, or conservatively?"

Naruto understood that Orochimaru was actually doing him the courtesy of not revealing their deal to the Kazekage, without permission. On the other hand, too many secrets had caused this mess. "Freely."

Kakashi glanced at Naruto, but said nothing as Orochimaru began talking.

"I have been keeping tabs on my former student in his travels. Call it a hobby of mine. I was aware that he spent some time in Suna, and that this time... bore fruit. Others also became aware of this, and were concerned. I was approached, and commissioned to develop some anti-Uchiha measures. I'm sure you can understand why."

"You won't reveal your client's name," Gaara guessed.

"That would be best for my personal ventures. Although I can confirm that it is no village currently represented in this room. So rest assured that your subordinates are trustworthy. At least, on this matter. Anyway, this girl that you've captured is one such anti-Uchiha measure."

Naruto blinked. "You... made her?"

"In part. I would credit her primary genetic donor with her creation, however."

"And that person would be...?"

Orochimaru gave him a blank stare. "I already had plenty of samples in storage."

Naruto groaned. "Dammit, Sasuke."

Kakashi let out a fake cough. "That tells us where she comes from. Sort of. I would rather we not keep her, if she won't tell us anything. In theory, she should be turned over to Suna. But Orochimaru is the only one here who knows where home is for her, and that must be considered. So we have some things to decide."

Naruto stepped closer to the girl, noticing something strange about her. "What's this black stuff staining her blindfold? What in the world did you guys do to her?"

"Ah, that. It wasn't us." Kakashi sounded distinctly uncomfortable. "She's blind. More accurately, she doesn't have eyes at all. Just the empty sockets. And this black substance frequently leaks from them. We don't know what it is, only that it isn't blood, since at the rate it leaks she'd be dead if it was."

"You're telling me a blind person who leaves a liquid trail was able to kill an Uchiha and evade Sand-nin?"

"Apparently she has some other way of seeing, but we have no idea what that is."

"Imagine an Inuzuka with a Byakugan embedded in his chest," Orochimaru suggested helpfully.

"How would that even work?" Naruto asked.

"By producing regular leakage."

"So this black stuff... is supposed to be there?"

"It would be more accurate to say that I couldn't get it to stop being there, but yes. Congratulations, gentlemen. You've met your first Deadeye. They specialize in hunting doujutsu. Clearly, she is a success."

"But she got caught," Naruto pointed out.

"Her target is dead, is he not?" Orochimaru asked.

"And I suppose you want me to give her back to you?"

"I would not be opposed to that. But if you insist on keeping her, or sending her elsewhere, I would not be opposed to that, either."

"So she's expendable."

"One could argue that all ninja are, even if they complete their missions."

"Which means you have more where she came from, no doubt."

Orochimaru smiled. "You know me so well, Hokage-sama."

Naruto shook his head. "Don't remind me, please. Gaara, how big of a problem would it be if you didn't get her?"

Gaara thought for a moment. "Assuming that Suna is compensated for the loss-"

"Please do not ask for a replacement Uchiha. Sasuke and his man parts have caused me enough trouble today."

"Compensation could include financial measures," Gaara continued.

"Oh, good."

"Then Suna would consider the matter closed, at least for now."

"Oh, hang on. You aren't going to insist that Boruto start dating Sand-nin in the future, are you?"

Gaara glanced at Orochimaru. "I would not be opposed."

Naruto closed his eyes. "Dammit, Sasuke."

Kakashi sighed. "I take it we aren't keeping the girl, either."

"No."

"Excellent." Orochimaru went over to the girl and began untying her. "Time to go, Rika-chan."

"Orochimaru-sama?" she asked softly.

"Answers will come later, child. Come along, before they change their minds."

Rika asked no further questions and quietly followed him out of the room.

"We could have studied her," Kakashi pointed out. "Found out more about how she was made."

Naruto glared at him. "We could have executed her and studied her parts. Notice how we didn't do that, either."

"There's no need for that tone. I'm only pointing out that if we have to fight her later, we missed a real opportunity here to find weak points. All because you didn't want to hurt her. And did you not hear that there are more like her?"

"If that day comes, feel free to say you told me so."

"I'll add it to the list. Right under 'Don't let Sasuke do whatever he wants' would be a choice spot."

"Really not the time, Kakashi. Really not the time."

* * *

Eventually, the Deadeyes were traced back to Kumo, through no fault of Orochimaru's. But by then, no one could really blame them. More fatherless children with the Sharingan began to emerge in various villages, most of them nowhere near as well-adjusted as Sarada or Salada. Certain parties had begun to pay a hefty fee to Kumo in order to have Deadeyes loaned to them.

An unforeseen side effect of this was that since Salada had proven resistant to doujutsu, she recieved several missions that brought her into contact with her other half-siblings. Part of this was just good or back luck, but the rest of it was the fact that she was cheaper to hire than a Deadeye, did not instantly kill the targets on sight, and being associated with her was not automatically seen as a negative. Rather, as a double heir, she was highly valued by her village. And since she lacked the Sharingan, her sanity was never called into question.

Sarada was somewhat less fortunate, in that her sanity was questioned. She was eventually able to improve upon her summoned bears. As it turned out, they were not even bears, or didn't have to be. She could shape them into various animals, and even give them different personalities, but for some reason, she could never alter the pink skin or green eyes. So she had given a pig to her mother (which was instantly named after Ino), a gorilla to Itachi (by his own request), and a small fox to Himawari (again, by request). Sarada kept a bear for herself, and assigned a second to Salada whenever she was in the village.

* * *

The next time that Naruto saw Rika, it was several years later. She was lying in a hospital bed. Sarada and Salada had found her, strapped to an operating table in an abandoned hideout. She had tried to resist their rescue effort, but had been too dehydrated to do more than offer weak protests. She told them that she her body was programmed to attack doujutsu, and that the moment she had her strength back, she would be unable to prevent herself.

All things considered, it was good that the hospital wasn't in Konoha.

And if Rika remembered Naruto, she did an excellent job of acting like she didn't.

In any case, leaving Rika in the Grass-based Uzumaki branch's care was the best option. Karin could keep her alive, if nothing else, and there were no doujutsu nearby to target.

When asked, Rika would only say that she had not been a prisoner, and that she had volunteered to be experimented on, so that the flaws in her would not be present in the Deadeyes who came after her. Naruto did not have it in him to tell her that Deadeyes in general were flawed, at least as people. They were decent killing machines, though.

 **The End.**

* * *

 **Endnotes:**

I know that Sakura and Karin met (more accurately, walked past each other) before what Sakura recalls as their first meeting. But I doubt either of them recalls that actual first time. At least, I have yet to see a flashback that indicates that. And really, if either of them was that observant, I doubt they'd have been head over heels for Sasuke.

Salada's bloodline is based on the idea of Hagoromo having passed on his life-force or body to what eventually became the Senju clan.

I am not sure how to take the idea of Orochimaru just being back in Konoha. My first thought was that he snuck in. My second was that perhaps he has some arrangement with Naruto, as Mitsuki's genetics seem obvious when paired with his abilities, and no one seems at all concerned. Of course, with as ridiculous as they've made it in recent episodes, I suppose there's no point in trying to apply logic to it.

In canon, there are at least three ways to get a Rinnegan: 1) through a transplant, as with Nagato. 2) through combining the chakra of Hagoromo's sons, as with Madara and Sasuke. 3) through apparently just being an Otsutsuki, who are super aliens without mortal limits, as with Momoshiki. I include that last one because it seems that the Boruto the movie is canon.

Yes, pink bears, what of it?

I get that recent episodes are supposed to all be in fun. But when they claimed Orochimaru, one of the most digusting ninja ever, was afraid of Shino's bugs, that killed the joke for me. Imagine: Orochimaru leaving the Kazekage facedown in the desert and rushing away, not because he was concerned about being found, but because he was afraid of the bugs that the body would attract. And by the way, if Orochimaru did get into something that Konoha was firmly against, how exactly is Yamato going to stop him? Of the very short list of people who _could_ stop Orochimaru, I would never expect to find Yamato anywhere on it. If anything, I would list him next to Anko and Kabuto on the very long list of people _especially_ susceptible to anything Orochimaru might decide to do to them. You don't send ramen to defeat Naruto, so don't send Orochimaru's old toys to handle him.

And now, a "treat" for anyone who stayed through the ranting.

* * *

 **Part 2.5: Mitsuki Explains It All  
**

Mitsuki was patient, but even he had his limits, and they were well established.

He could listen to elderly people drone on for hours, if he had the right motivation.

He could smile as children shrieked directly into his ears.

What he could not do was put up with another day of his teammates Boruto and Sarada arguing over who had the best idol.

To be fair, they were very good idols. Boruto practically worshipped Uchiha Sasuke, likely the most powerful shinobi who was technically not part of the village and yet defended it as if he was. Sarada idolized Uzumaki Naruto, the 7th Hokage, who was arguably more powerful than all of his predecessors.

The problem was that Boruto and Sarada could never agree which one was better, and so they would never shut up about it.

Mitsuki tried, he really did. But one day, he simply looked up from his bowl of ramen, glared across the table at them, and said, "You're both in denial."

Boruto and Sarada froze in mid-tirade.

"What are you talking about?" Sarada finally asked. "We're just trying to settle this."

"No, you aren't. You're arguing because that's what your friendship is based on: arguing. You're not even making any new points. You're just recycling the same ones you always use. It's boring and stupid and pointless. If you could actually settle this that way, it would have been settled within five minutes. I can settle this in half that time."

Boruto scowled at him. "Prove it!"

"Happily." Mitsuki cleared his throat and pointed at Boruto. "You say you like Sasuke because you think he's cool and strong. But that's not why you really like him."

"Of course that's why-!"

"You like him because he broke all of the rules, and then made his own. You like him because you couldn't get along by following the rules, either, so you like the idea of someone so strong that they were able to ignore the rules. You like him because he's a shinobi who turned his back on being a shinobi by betraying his village. You think it's cool to not have to take orders from anyone. Even the Hokage doesn't order Sasuke. And I'd bet anything you like that most of all."

Boruto's face was bright red by the end. He said nothing.

Mitsuki turned to Sarada, who immediately tensed up. "You like the Hokage because he takes care of everyone in the village and treats them like family. But what you really like about him is that he especially treats your family like family."

"What's so wrong about that?" Sarada demanded.

Mitsuki ignored her question. "He treats your father like a brother. He treats you like a neice. He treats your mother like a sister. Or tries to."

Sarada's eyes narrowed. "Don't even-"

"The Hokage goes out of his way to spend time with you. He listens to your problems and offers advice. He makes sure that you have everything you need."

"But that's what a Hokage is supposed-"

"He makes your mother laugh in a way that no one else can."

"Don't go there," Sarada warned him.

Mitsuki stared at her, unafraid and unapologetic. "There are people who will never forget that your father was once my father's student. The Hokage's former feelings for your mother are a matter of public record. I do not need to imply anything. The facts are more than enough."  
"What facts?" Sarada demanded.

"The Hokage is trying to be a father for you. To fill in for the one that was consistently absent from your life. As you say, that could be considered part of his job. But I doubt every child in the village without a consistent father figure can make the claim that they rated such frequent, personal attention from the Hokage. And surely no mother, other than his own wife, could say-"

"Shut up or I'll hit you," Sarada interrupted angrily.

Again, Mitsuki ignored her. "At least argue about what you really feel. Boruto, you like Sasuke because he doesn't have to listen to your father. Sarada, you like the Hokage because he's doing his best to be your father. You both want the other's father as your own. And they both seem to prefer the other's child, to an extent. Yet neither of you realizes how lucky you truly are, to have your mothers. Or to have a mother at all."  
Sarada considered that, then immediately ran home to hug her mother.

Boruto took a little longer, but eventually went home and asked his mother if she wanted help with anything. Which, oddly enough, resulted in him and Himawari being sent to return some empty baskets to Sarada's mother. Instead of appreciating this, she became convinced that this many children acting so politely surely meant that one of them had done something awful recently, and a whole hour had passed before Boruto and Himawari could escape her relentless questioning. Ultimately, though, this did make them both appreciate their own mother more.

 **The True End.**


	4. Sleeper

Notes: I feel that Sarada's backstory was rushed, because there are certain holes that aren't resolved. So this is my attempt to fill some of them. Which means this chapter follows the actual manga much more closely and has a much stronger basis in canon. Which in turn will make it far more difficult for some to accept. I ask that you read the ENTIRE story before jumping to incorrect (or even correct) conclusions.

Summary: Failure to recall if your husband wears glasses, after a decade of marriage, when ninety percent of his offense is doujutsu-based, is a big deal. Someone should have looked into that. This is what may happen if they don't.

* * *

 **Springtime for Sarada**

 **A Naruto Fanfic by**

 **Nate Grey (xman0123-at-aol-dot-com)**

 **Chapter 4: Sleeper**

* * *

Naruto would not approve. But Sakura was not going to be responsible for the future of Naruto's clan. She was not Naruto's wife. She wasn't guarding Naruto's secrets.

It had to be done. The mission was too important, and the risk that vital facts could leak, too great.

Sakura could not reveal what she could not remember. What she was not allowed to remember.

His mind made up, Sasuke raised his hand over the sleeping form of his wife. His Sharingan glowed and swirled into the Mangekyo Sharingan. " _Forget_ ," he whispered, and a second later, Sakura's breathing slowed as the order took hold.

* * *

"How could you be married to him and not know if he wore glasses?!" Sarada demanded.

"Sarada, that's-" Sakura began, but trailed off, unable to answer.

Sarada glared at her mother, shaking her head. "Are you even really married to him? Your whole relationship is strange!"

The yell was expected, but the speed with which Sakura pulverized the ground between them with a single punch caught them both off guard. They both stared at each other, the heated tension giving way to awkwardness and regret.

After a moment, Sakura apologized from the bottom of her heart, wincing as she noticed Sarada's tears. She did her best to explain Sasuke's important work that kept him away, without actually explaining it, of course. And for the moment, Sarada accepted the apology... but not the explanation, Sakura could tell.

And before either of them could make another move, the entire house cracked and collapsed. And then so did Sakura, landing face-first on the ground as her monstrous strength left her in the space of a second.

But even as Sarada rushed over to check on her mother, she could not help but say it.

And even as blackness began to eat away at Sakura's consciousness, she could not help but hear it.

"How could you not remember?"

 _Because I'm not allowed to..._

* * *

" _Remember_."

Sakura gasped loudly and sat up straight in a bed that was not her own, only to find a Mangekyo Sharingin filling her vision.

" _Tell me about the child_."

Sakura could not resist the order. And in fact, she did not want to. She was a mother, after all, and fiercely pround of her child, with good reason. Of course she wanted to brag.

It wasn't like she ever got the change to brag to Sasuke. That would require both some form of contact between them and an active interest in Sarada's life on his part. And even Sakura, who could freely admit her own many failings as a parent, could not pretend that Sasuke was doing an adequate job as Sarada's father.

Nor could she pretend that Sasuke had not warned her that this might be the case one day. It was true enough that Sasuke wanted to revive his clan, but he had been willing to wait, and Sakura had not. It was perhaps the one time that Sasuke had given in to her will.

Sarada was not a mistake, or a regret. Neither was marrying Sasuke. And while Sakura was not so immature as to expect a fairy tale marriage, least of all from Sasuke, she had still hoped for more than she had. And it was not so much that Sasuke hadn't tried at all, as it was that he stuck to what he was best at. Which had never been raising a family. And Sakura hadn't expected him to suddenly become the best father in the world.

But she had hoped that he would at least be there to disappoint their daughter in person. Which sounded silly, but carried far more weight after a decade of not even that much.

At this point, the only other two adults who showed any considerable interest in Sarada were Shino, as her teacher, and Naruto, as her... well, as everyone's, Hokage. Shino was an old comrade, and Naruto was more of lovable brother who had grown into someone who was not a total mess. And anyone would assume they cared more than Sarada's own father did, because you could at least see them caring.

So when the misshapen man showed any interest in Sarada, deep down, Sakura was thrilled. She told him everything he could ever need to know about Sarada. She even gave him the baby pictures in her wallet, would not even notice they were missing because she would automatically replace them with identical spares once she returned home.

He could not help but smirk at the irony: he now knew more about Sarada than her own father did. Locating and identifying her later on would be child's play.

" _Conceal_ ," Shin ordered, pointing at Sakura, and she nodded slowly, her eyes empty and unseeing.

* * *

The next time they saw each other, Sakura knew nothing, and attacked him with full force. That was to be expected. She had been made to forget twice over. There was no way for her to know unless ordered, and Sasuke was not the type to realize that someone else's key had been in his lock.

And it had been easy to find out, what type of man Sasuke was. Shin only needed to see Sasuke's form in Sakura's mind, a black shadow with no obvious features, to know that.

But even though she had no memory of Shin, the impluse to stop attacking when his eye was fixed upon her remained embedded within her body, as did his previous order. She told herself that she was buying time to learn his motivations, but it was far simpler: he would not let her attack again until he was prepared for her.

* * *

"People often underestimate genjutsu, and because of that, the damage done by them can actually prove irreparable."

Kurenai paused to gauge the reactions of the students, and whe she saw the disbelief, was glad she'd agreed to Shino's request to be a guest lecturer for the day. "Many people can train their bodies to build a resistance against many ninjutsu and taijutsu attacks. The more times they are exposed to them, the more likely they will find a way to avoid taking the maximum amount of damage intended by an attacker."

Several students murmured their agreement.

"But depending on the person, genjutsu can have the exact opposite result. If the wrong person experiences a single genjutsu that is powerful enough, it could reduce natural resistance and leave them more vulnerable to even the weakest level of genjutsu. That is part of why there are so few genjutsu masters, aside from those born with an obvious talent for it. Simply practicing on the same person too often could have unforeseen results."

* * *

" _Conceal_."

It was the only warning Sarada got before the kunai slammed into the pillow, where her head had been only a second before. She scrambled off the bed, and stared in horror up at her mother, who lifted the kunai, turned empty eyes on her, and lunged.

" _Conceal_."

* * *

Hinata asked no questions when Naruto burst through the door with a blood-drenched Sarada clutched tightly in his arms. She didn't need to. Once they got Sarada into the bathroom and began scrubbing the blood off of her face and arms, Naruto simply started talking, unable to keep it to himself. Sarada made the whole thing easier by remaining largely motionless.

"There was a genjutsu on Sakura," Naruto murmured. "As near as I can tell, she was ordered to conceal everything about Sarada. I don't know when it was put on her, but it might even explain why Sakura was so dodgy anytime she was asked about when and where Sarada was born. I knew Sakura would be sensitive about giving birth while Sasuke was gone, and I wanted to ask. But she said Karin was with her the whole time and brought her back safe, and Sarada was born healthy. I didn't want to pry. I should have."

"The blood?" Hinata prompted.

Naruto grimaced. "The command... it evolved somehow, from hiding information about Sarada, to erasing her existence entirely. Sakura tried to kill Sarada. But she must have been resisting the order with everything she had, because if she'd put all her effort into carrying it out, I wouldn't have made it in time." He paused and shook his head. "No, I still didn't make it in time. When I got there, Sarada was trapped in her bedroom. Sakura had blocked the door from the inside, so I went through the window. Sakura was hugging Sarada... or trying to crush her, I'm still not sure. But she had dropped the kunai, and Sarada-"

"She told me to do it," Sarada said dully. "While I could. She said she'd rather die than kill me. So I picked up the kunai, and then she was hugging me, and there was so much blood-"

"You don't have to talk about it," Hinata interrupted.

"You're right," Sarada agreed, giving her an uneasy smile. "There's no need. I see it every time I close my eyes." She paused, staring closely at Hinata. "Um, can I ask you something?"

"Anything, dear," Hinata encouraged.

"I know it's not the same, but maybe you know how." Sarada pointed at her brand new Mangekyo Sharingan. "I'd really like to turn this off now, please."

* * *

 **Endnotes:**

Sakura was obsessed with Sasuke for most of her life, yet claims she doesn't know if he wore glasses. There are only two possible explanations for this.

1) Sakura is horrible at lying to people she loves. There is evidence of this, given her love confession to Naruto, and her claim of leaving Konoha to join Sasuke. Neither believed the lie, so hopefully Sakura would learn from that and either never do it again, or get better at it. Though, she clearly didn't get better at it or learn from it, which makes this a weak excuse to me.

2) Sakura genuinely can't remember, due to genjutsu. Sasuke has used genjutsu on her before, so there is precedence for it. Although if Sasuke has truly changed, I fail to see how being unable to trust Sakura to keep her mouth shut is evidence of that change. The only way that would be acceptable is if Sakura asked him to do it.

So I must lean to the genjutsu answer, for the simple fact that there is no real reason to lie about Sasuke wearing glasses (though there is also no reason to conceal that with genjutsu). Whether he did or didn't, the fact that Sakura doesn't wear glasses would still imply that Karin had a greater chance of being Sarada's real mother either way. And of all the things to lie about in Sasuke's past, lack of headgear is a silly one.

I am sure some won't like the implication that Sasuke is behind Sakura's bad memory. But unless you want to blame poor storytelling, I can't imagine who else could be, without someone close to Sakura noticing and attempting to fix it. And since no rules ever apply to Sasuke, him having done it is the only case I can imagine where Naruto and Shizune and Ino see Sakura all the time, know something isn't right, and do nothing about it. The alternative is that they noticed something wrong, Sasuke wasn't responsible, and they failed to do everything in their power to get him to come home and at least try to fix it.

I credit Shin with forcing Sakura to hide all info on Sarada, even from Sarada herself. Yes, this could have been Sasuke as well, but there are again two reasons why I doubt that. First, Sasuke being responsible would require him to have far more interest in Sarada than he had shown in a decade, so it would be wildly out of character for him to be behind this. Second, the fact that Sasuke doesn't recognize Sarada when they are reunited, and very nearly attacks her, suggests that he has not been overly concerned with keeping track of her or how safe she is. Kaguya took priority even over that.

Shin, on the other hand, has far more sensible motivation. Keeping this information from Sarada eventually drives her to leave the village in search of Sasuke, which exposes her to Shin. By capturing her, he could use her for spare parts, or lure Sasuke into a trap. Assuming Sasuke would actually attempt to save her or could even be reached in a timely manner. And assuming Sarada had actually gained her Sharingan in the traditional way, failure to meet Sasuke, or failure to get answers from him, could have awakened it.

I actually do invite opinions and debates on this, because this is the only explanation I've been able to come up with that makes sense to me. I don't want to blame this on poor storytelling, I really don't. In part because I like Sarada way more than I do Boruto, but mostly because her backstory is way more interesting than Boruto's, and deserves to have had some serious thought invested in it.


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